It was a summer of little to no rain here in Connecticut as our state underwent a drought. With so little rainfall this summer, the entire Housatonic River Watershed region continues to experience a serious issue brought on by climate change, rising temperatures, and other factors. At this time, it is being considered a stage D2 severe drought.

When there is a drought, there is a loss of groundwater, which essentially feed rivers and provides drinking water for private wells. Furthermore, it can cause a decrease in crop growth and produce and an increase in fire hazards. Droughts can also greatly affect aquatic life due to low water levels. You may also notice an earlier and less vibrant fall foliage this year.

So, what can we do to help?

· Conserve water! Use it only for drinking, hygiene, and sanitation purposes
· Don’t go fishing
· Stop watering and mowing your lawn
· Instead of pouring water down the drain, use it for something else, like watering your plants
· Fix dripping faucets and plumbing leaks

Get ready to photograph nature’s special summer scenes! Our 3rd Annual “Loving Our Lands” Photo Contest fundraiser will take place from July 16th until August 14th 2022. We welcome all levels of photographers to submit photos online in our four categories:

Animal Kingdom

Favorite Flowers

Look Up!

Took A Hike!

Support the contest with a $20 donation for each photo you submit, or with your $1 donation for each vote you make for your favorite photos. Online voting will determine one winner for each of the four categories. A local professional photographer will also select one photo as the Best in Show Grand Prize winner. Invite your family and friends to join in on the fun and increase your photo’s chance of winning our contest fundraiser! Enter now at www.gogophotocontest.com/candlewoodvalleyregionallandtrust.

No Mow May is an initiative to put a pause on mowing residential lawns in the month of May. The main goal of No Mow May protects and boosts the struggling populations of bees, butterflies, and other essential pollinators. By keeping your mower in storage until June, you will help local bees and butterflies thrive. Plus, these insects will pollinate your fruit and vegetable plants for you, ensuring you have a great harvest from your home garden.

Where Did No Mow May Come From?

No Mow May began in the UK in 2019. The initiative was planned in order to restore bee, butterfly, and wildflower populations that have plummeted in the UK in the last century. No Mow May was so successful at reviving local wildlife that it began to take off in the United States in 2021.

Due to the positive effects of No Mow May, more and more local governments are asking residents to put a pause on mowing for the month of May. Because bee colonies have been dying off in the United States for decades, No Mow May is crucial to saving the species that pollinate the crops we grow for food.

5 Benefits of No Mow May

The prospect of not mowing your lawn for an entire month in spring might seem like a recipe for disaster at first. After all, most of us enjoy a nice, neat lawn. However, there are some incredible benefits of not mowing in May. Read about them below:

Protect Bees and Other Essential Species

Bees and butterflies feed on the nectar and pollen found in flowers to survive. Dandelions, clover, and wild violets all support local bee and butterfly populations. By participating in No Mow May, you let the natural flowers in your lawn provide food for pollinating species.

Bees, butterflies, moths, and other pollinators have experienced unprecedented die-off events in North America and the rest of the world. As these pollinators die, essential crops go unpollinated and fail. This leads to rising food prices since there is less food produced from farming. So, you will not only help local wildlife if you participate in No Mow May, but you’ll also save money at the grocery store.

Ensure Your Fruits and Vegetables are Pollinated

If you grow fruit trees, berries, or a vegetable garden, taking part in No Mow May will ensure you get a great harvest. When you allow dandelions and other plants to flower in your yard, you’ll attract bees and butterflies. These pollinators will also visit your garden plants, where they will pollinate the flowers there. The flowers on your fruits and vegetables must be pollinated, or they won’t produce any fruit. So, not mowing in May means your garden will produce more homegrown food than ever before.

If you do mow your yard during May, you risk driving off pollinators and causing further population collapse. Without enough local pollinators, your garden will go unpollinated. This results in plants that flower, but don’t produce any food.

Reduce Your Spring Workload

If you don’t mow your yard in May, you’ll save yourself a lot of time and work. Instead of hours spent mowing and edging the lawn, you can focus on household spring cleaning tasks or that weekend renovation project you’ve been putting off. No Mow May is an excellent way to give yourself more free time while doing something great for the environment.

Instead of doing traditional lawn care in May, consider spending that time selecting and planting varieties for a vegetable garden or flower bed. This way, you can still improve the look of your yard even while you’re letting wildflowers bloom on your lawn.

Save Money on Gas

Lawn mowers devour gasoline, so you have to pay at the pump to mow your yard. Even if you use an electric mower, that energy use shows up on your monthly bill. You can avoid all of these costs by not mowing your lawn in May. So, No Mow May benefits the bees and puts a little extra cash in your wallet.

Participating in No Mow May won’t do damage to your lawn either. Reducing your frequency of mowing for a month helps combat habitat loss for bees and butterflies, but your grass will bounce back once you start mowing again in June. Just remember to mow on the tallest height the first time you mow again, then gradually work your way down to the desired length in the following weeks.

Enjoy Flowers in Your Yard

What we often consider weeds are actually fantastic wildflowers. Dandelions, clover, creeping Charlie, wild violets, buttercups, and goldenrod commonly grow in lawns throughout North America. Not only are these plants food for pollinators, but they are also beautiful flowers that can help your unmowed lawn look like a beautiful farm meadow, once you get used to the long grass.

Not only are pollinators such as bees at risk from excessive mowing, but wildflower species are also too. By allowing wild flowering plants to bloom and cast seeds, you will help prevent a decline in natural plant biodiversity. So, No Mow May is good for the plants, the bees, and you.

In January 2017, the Land Trust Alliance launched a new program to help land trusts address climate change. Climate change is a global event, but its impacts are very local. Use the climate change website to learn how climate change will impact our region, plan for change, and learn to adapt management practices for agriculture and wildlife habitat.

Let’s all work together to stop climate change and practice what Earth Day is all about. This Earth Day, we celebrate the day in 1970 when 20 million Americans demanded we stop polluting our environment. Earth Day led to creating the Environmental Protection Agency, state and federal laws, and local organizations dedicated to protecting our environment. Here at Candlewood Valley Regional Land Trust, everyday is Earth Day.

The land we love…

In 1971, Danbury conservationists, Philip and Monique Weideland, and their fellow neighbors, founded and donated substantial tracts to The Land Trust of Danbury. Additional donors expanded their holdings and the organization successfully merged with the New Fairfield Land Trust in 2016 to form the organization we are today. To date, CVRLT preserves nearly 500 acres of woodland, meadow, mountain, and wetland habitats, and the species of wildlife therein.

If you love the land, there’s a lot you can do…

Land is the key to a healthy and secure future. It provides pure drinking water, healthy food, clean air and places to reflect and recreate. People who are connected to special places energize the land trust movement — be a part of it!

Support our mission by donating at https://candlewoodvalleyrlt.org/donate-now. Learn about other ways to make a difference at CVRLT by visiting https://candlewoodvalleyrlt.org/16-2. If you are interested in volunteering, please apply at https://candlewoodvalleyrlt.org/volunteer.