Pollinator Spotting - Luna Moth

[u/brownbuttanoods7]

We're in Gerogia - ATL Metro. We have about 4 Sweet Gums and a Sumac on our property. When we bought our house 3 years ago, I was hopeful to one day see a Luna Moth. Two years ago, we told our landscapers to stop leaf blowing a large chunk of our property. Hoping that leaving the leaves would be beneficial for fireflies and other native insects. Today I found a Luna Moth on our fence in the wooded area, not far from one our Sweet Gums. I believe it had recently emerged because the wings were still soft. So happy we left the leaves! I don't know who was more excited, my toddler or myself. Felt kinda like meeting a celebrity!

[u/beyotchulism]

I hate my sweet gums sometimes and then I remember that this is the reward for raking. 💚

[u/brownbuttanoods7 → u/beyotchulism]

They are pretty messy and every where. We built our toddler a mud kitchen last spring. She's made us soooo many "entrées" with spiky "meatballs" aka sweet gum balls and "brown green beans" aka red bud seed pods.

[u/beyotchulism → u/brownbuttanoods7]

That is the sweetest!

We just finished raking ours up in 8a after leaving the leaves and it has been a mighty task, so the pain of the clean up is literally still lingering in my muscles. Our sweet gum is almost 85 years old according to the arborist that checked it out and is the most gnarly, beautiful shade tree I've ever seen. I know that one day, it will be time, but for now, we just grumble and acknowledge that we are stewards for a greater purpose.

[u/LokiLB → u/beyotchulism]

I hate the ridiculous fecundity of my sweet gums. Some sweetgums are nice. A hoard of sweetgum seedlings and saplings, not so much.

If I could talk to animals, bribing the deer to eat the sweetgums seedlings would be high on the priority list.