Susan Sommers was frightened of her father’s bees while growing up and gave them a wide berth.
“They scared me so much I never wanted to be around them,” Sommers said. That all changed when her father died and she decided to honor him by taking over his beehive.
Sommers is now a champion of bees and other pollinators, leading an effort to preserve and expand their habitats and forage areas, which include convincing Longmonters to let their lawns grow a little shaggy.
If more people would do that, the local ecosystem would grow stronger and healthier. A well-manicured lawn just doesn't cut it when it comes to preserving the environment and saving water consumption, she said.
“I just see all these picture perfect, weirdly green lawns around me,” she said. “I just don’t see what use they have.”
Sommers and other members of the Boulder County Beekeepers Association successfully lobbied the Longmont City Council to declare May 2022 as “No Mow May” in Longmont. The proclamation asks that Longmonters to hold off on mowing for the entire month
Longer lawns will assist in plant reproduction and support other species of wildlife. Those include pollinators — like bees — which are responsible for about one third of the food and water residents consume, the proclamation reads.
Sommers said she hopes “No Mow May” will get people thinking about their relationship with lawns, especially in a time of persistent drought in Colorado. “We’re going to have to make some changes. We can’t keep going on like this,” she said.
Sommers applauds cities like the city of Aurora, which has proposed limits on any new turf including golf courses, lawns and grass on medians in an effort to cut water consumption. Denver is also working with Denver Water on green building codes that could include caps on decorative turf and seasonal gallon limits on watering per square foot, according to the Colorado Sun.
“It’s a new reality for Colorado,” Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman told the Sun. “Water resources are becoming increasingly scarce in the state and we have to recognize that.”
The city of Longmont’s recently adopted 2022/2023 Water Supply and Drought Management Plan, does not include such drastic measures. The city’s Sustainable Water Conservation level emphasizes voluntary conservation among the city and businesses, according to a staff report.
Longmont, unlike many other cities on the Front Range, has a stable water supply, thanks to water tables that boast good to moderate snow packs, said Ken Huson, Longmont’s water resources manager.
“We are doing better than most,” Huson said. “We are doing pretty well and I really don’t see that changing much in the foreseeable future.”
Sommers realizes that most people are not going to lock away their lawn mowers for good. She just wants residents to moderate their lawn mower usage.
“People can try to mow maybe every other week instead of every week,” Sommers said. “That could help. Imagine the savings for people and the city.”
