Don't mow, let it grow

The best time to let it grow is between April and September.

If you've missed No Mow May, you can Let It Bloom in June, or take part in Knee-high July!

Waiting until all of the flowers have gone over before cutting will have the biggest impact.

You don't have to let the whole of your garden grow wild - leaving just a few patches around the edges can benefit a whole host of insects, giving them a place to hide, breed and even lay eggs, supporting the next generation.

Although you can cut the grass at any time, though the longer you leave it, the better the result for wildlife! 

When you're ready to get the mower back out, follow these simple steps to make the most of the cuttings:

1. Once you've mown or strimmed the grass, leave the cuttings to dry where they are for a few days. 
2. Shake the seeds out - you can share these with others to kickstart their own mini meadow, or sow them in your own patch.

Then you have a few options:

1. Have a go at composting - you can find a beginners guide here.
2. Take some woody cuttings from shrubs to combine with the grass, and finding a nice quiet spot you can make a natural insect habitat

If you don't want to cut all the grass in one go, try doing it in sections. This still gives the insects somewhere to go as you start winding down to autumn.

Every flower counts! Five daisies, two dandelions and six buttercups together provide enough nectar to support a honeybee a day.

On a single day in summer, one acre of wildflower meadow can contain three million flowers, producing one kilogram of nectar sugar. That’s enough to support nearly 96,000 bees per day.

If you'd like to let your neighbours and passers by know what's going on, you can download our free signs to inspire others (details below).

Get rewarded for activities like growing a wild lawn by signing up and join the WilderGlos community, where you can earn points, climb the leaderboard, and earn prizes.

WilderGlos is an online platform available to anyone living in Gloucestershire where you can take part in activities to boost biodiversity.

By letting parts of your garden grow wild, we're sure you'll see lots of new plants, insects, and even birds in your now wild space. This is a great opportunity to download some spotter sheets or use our wildlife explorer pages to narrow down what it is you've seen.

Your sightings help to build valuable records of our county that we use to monitor species increases, declines, and movements, and they even help us advise on planning applications. 

We'd love to know what wildlife you've seen as a result of taking part in the challenge, once you’ve built your habitat house or even just while you're out and about. Report your sighting to our records centre, GCER, to let us know what you’ve seen - no matter how common you think it is!