Backyard Columbus

08/30/2026

The Clearwing Hummingbird Moth!

🌸It’s easy to mistake this moth for a hummingbird!
🌸Hummingbird Moths are members of the sphinx moth family (Sphingidae), which have heavy bodies and long front wings.
🌸One obvious difference between the birds and the moths is size. The ruby-throated hummingbird can be 3” long. Hummingbird Moths are much smaller at 1-1/2” long.
🌸While most sphinx moths fly at night, hummingbird moths fly during the day.
🌸Depending on the species, these caterpillars may eat the leaves of viburnums, honeysuckles, snowberry, blueberries, and members of the rose family. Plant any or all of these to attract a hummingbird moth to your yard!
🌸The hummingbird moth is a crucial pollinator, especially for twilight-blooming flowers that other pollinators, like bees and butterflies, often miss.

It’s always so fun to see these moths and I was SO EXCITED when I saw one laying eggs on our Viburnum (I couldn’t get to my camera in time😂)!

Thanks to Mass Audubon for all the great info on this incredible moth 🌸🙏🏼🌸🙏🏼

08/29/2026

🎉 I earned the emerging talent badge this week, recognizing me for creating engaging content that sparks an interest among my fans!

08/27/2026

The little things.
The things no one notices.

Some of these little things freak people out. Why? They’re little and usually don’t want to mess with you.

When I started LOOKING and NOTICING…. I noticed the details, the beauty.
The COLORS
The hairs
The joints
The WINGS….

I hope you really take a close look at these photos. These are all taken in our suburban backyard, things that found our little piece of the planet because we have a space, a home for them.
Always stay curious 👀

These photos were taken with the SANDMARC® macro lens 100mm for iPhone 17pro

08/25/2026

My favorite summer experiment!

🦗ＴＨＥ ＳＯＵＮＤＳ ＯＦ
ＳＵＭＭＥＲ🦗

When you provide habitat - even a small one- nature finds you.

Providing nature spaces doesn’t mean you’ll get eaten alive with mosquitoes, your yard will go to hell in a hand basket and everything gets crazy 😜

It simply means adding some native plants, plant a tree (native tree 😉) and try to eliminate as much pesticide use as you can (it’s easier than you think and you’ll save LOADS of 💰!).

Once you do this, you’ll also have the nature orchestra you remember as a kid 😉 🦗✨

08/19/2026

New blog post hit late (way too late 😴) last night 🌙
Hopefully this will give you a few ideas of what you can plant this fall to have late summer blooms next year 😃

https://www.backyardcolumbus.com/post/what-s-blooming-right-now-a-late-summer-pollinator-garden-in-ohio

What's blooming in an Ohio garden in late summer? Take a walk through my backyard to see sneezew**d, coneflowers, Joe-Pye w**d, asters, ironw**d and more. These beautiful late-season plants don't just add color to the garden. They're also busy feeding bees, butterflies and other pollinators.

08/16/2026

It’s late summer and not a recommended time to prune bushes.
In *my* experience, however, elderberries, button bushes and willows are very forgiving (especially elderberries).
With all the crazy weather we’ve had in central Ohio, new growth is everywhere and the new small branches are in the way of our walking path….pruning time!

A lot of folks don’t know where/how to prune, but you don’t need to be overwhelmed! Just pick a logical spot (right above a leaf node or at a joint) and cut with a clean pair of pruning shears.

I want to thank Just Good Soil | Garden Amendments for the nicest pair of pruning shears and nippers I’ve ever had….
I promise I’ll take good care
of them 🤞🏼😃

*it is recommended that after cutting a plant, wipe your shears with 70% alcohol or household disinfectant wipe to kill bacteria, fungi and viruses before moving to the next plant 😉

For your own set of really well made garden tools, check out JustGoodSoil.com and use my discount code: CATHY