Diario del proyecto Casual Woodland Garden

We have a wooded backyard and a traditional front yard with lawn and landscaped beds. For the longest time, I carefully trimmed and maintained burning bush in front of our house and along one side (eight plants in all). I did this even as I removed burning bush in the back. I was thinking of the two areas differently and independent of each other. I felt that the wild and wooded area in back should host only local and naturally occurring species. In the front, I was willing to host more cultivated and cosmopolitan species. I went along like this for 15 years. Carefully trimming and tolerating the burning bush in the front beds but removing it whenever it popped up in the back. Eventually, I became tired of this silliness and replaced it in front with thuja occidentalis, oak leaf hydrangea, and bottlebrush buckeye. It makes no sense adding to a problem in the front that I'm trying to subtract from in the back. The new plantings in front better complement the assisted regeneration I'm working on in back.

     

This in no way means we're in a hurry to remove the other non-native species planted in our front beds. Only that we're choosing our battles carefully. If anything, we're focused on filling the beds in front and limiting the need for so much mulch.

Decided to set up a moth sheet in the tree house to see what might show up. This was more challenging than I expected it to be. There were plenty of moth and insect visitors, but they were difficult to photograph with my new lens. I think this is because the bright light and black-light messed with the aperture. Some of the photos I ended up taking with the iphone. I didn't get the large silk moths I hoped for, but knew at the outset they might not show up.

The trial run didn't include a black-light and I only spent an hour or so the first night trying it out. The next night, I bought a cheap black-light at Depot and had a few more visitors. If I do it again, I'll probably get a more powerful black-light.

First the non-moths...
       

I didn't expect to get this much attention from non-moths. I was also surprised by the plant-hoppers. I think of them as staying closer to the ground, which obviously isn't true. There were many smaller beetles, hoppers and insects that I didn't take the time to photograph.

Now, the moths...
           

I wasn't really sure what to expect in terms of moths. I don't know if this is a good amount or a bad amount. I suppose I was satisfied with the turnout. The Betrothed Underwing was the most exciting visitor because of its size. I was hoping for large silk moths, and when it first fluttered in I thought I might have one. It was clearly interested in the black-light. The best thing about this project is the creativity in the naming of the moths... elegant grass veneer, betrothed underwing, deceptive snout, dusky groundling. Who among us isn't thrilled by a deceptive snout?

The other thing worth mentioning is that I prepared some "moth attractant" liquid. There is a recipe for this stuff online. It involves mixing together beer, brown sugar, and bananas. It worked, but when I spread it on the railing in the tree-house it also attracted bald-faced hornets. I'd advise not spreading the attractant too close to where you're planning to observe the moths. The good news is the hornets aren't nocturnal and all but one confused, possibly drunk hornet left after nightfall.