'A great initiative': Offaly County Council to embrace 'No Mow May' again this year
Plans for this year's edition of the initiative were discussed at the April meeting of Tullamore Municipal District
Offaly County Council will once again participate in 'No Mow May' in 2026 which aims to support pollinators by allowing wildflowers and grasses to bloom across selected sites under its management.
The initiative forms part of the council’s commitments under the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan and aligns with actions in the Offaly Biodiversity Plan 2025-2029 and Climate Action Plan 2024-2029.
The project is a collaboration between the Offaly County Council’s Heritage & Biodiversity Team, Climate Action Team, and the Municipal District Teams in order to enhance local biodiversity while engaging with communities.
Plans for this year's edition of the initiative were discussed at the April meeting of the Tullamore Municipal District in the Town Hall recently.
Senior Executive Engineer for Tullamore Municipal District, Joe Dooley stated: "We've acquired a new mower for the area to assist with No Mow May and all the associated grass cutting that goes with that."
He continued: "We've commenced the grass season already so I just want to highlight that we have our No Mow May maps finalised and we are ready to go with our new force, grass will be cut accordingly from the 15th of June onwards, as appropriate."
Speaking on the experience of previous versions of the project locally, Tullamore MD Cathaoirleach Declan Harvey said: "I'm all for No Mow May but May can run into June, July and August. Every year, each councillor here gets asked about the growth on the roundabouts, I hope it doesn't get as bad this year."
He added: "It's great that you have got the new mower if it means that areas can be done a bit more often if need be."
Councillor Shane Murray praised the initiative. He pointed out: "No Mow May was done fantastically last year, it was really textbook stuff, it did run on a bit but we know the reasons why that was and it's not going to happen again this year."
Councillor Aoife Masterson also commended the initiative and expressed her joy that the council are continuing the project. She said: "I think it's a great initiative, it's something that when done right can really bring a great deal to the community. We haven't always got it right in the past but we're learning and working on it so I'm glad that we are sticking with it and haven't given up on the idea."
Senior Executive Engineer, Joe Dooley accepted the feedback from councillors from last year's edition of the project but assured they are well prepared to embrace the initiative this year.
He reflected: "We have put a lot of research into this, we were hamstrung last year with tendering and relying on contractors so that's why have taken the power back ourselves because we have the staff and the man power.
Dooley finished by saying: "The research has gone into a machine that can pick grass whilst adhering to the ethos of No Mow May and not just drop it onto the ground. This machine will solve things and we'll have everywhere looking green and hopefully it'll be a success this year."