If you see the grass longer than it should be in Cape Town, worry not – it’s just no-mow season once again.
Every year, the City of Cape Town initiates its Spring Readiness Programme, when mowing at parks and public open spaces is halted to allow flowers to bloom and seed ahead of spring.
This then helps to create a healthier, more colourful landscape and supports nature by attracting important pollinators.
No-mow season in Cape Town
Councillor Patricia Higham, Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health, stated that the initiative is about more than skipping maintenance.
“By letting nature take its course, we create living conservation corridors right in our city. Beyond the beauty of wildflowers, the no-mow initiative supports pollinators, encourages natural seed production, and helps protect ecological corridors by reducing unnecessary disturbance.” Higham said.
The City is holding back the mowers in selected public open spaces, greenbelts, road verges, and parks – areas that often host remnants of critically endangered vegetation and link larger biodiversity hotspots such as nature reserves and national parks.
This pause gives local plants the chance to grow, bloom, and spread their seeds. In spring, these spaces transform into living habitats that draw in bees, butterflies, birds, and other pollinators, helping to sustain the city’s ecological web.
Temporary NO MOWING signs mark participating sites, encouraging residents to respect these patches of urban nature and appreciate their role in supporting biodiversity.
By the end of November, the mowers will return, but until then, Cape Town’s green spaces are being left to do what they do best: grow, thrive, and keep the city buzzing.
Do you think other cities in SA should implement a similar initiative?
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1.
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