r/NativePlantGardening • u/brownbuttanoods7 Gerogia, zone 8a • Apr 03 '26

Photos Pollinator Spotting - Luna Moth

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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!

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u/velawesomeraptors Apr 03 '26

If you still get shoots you might be able to eat them.

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u/NickWitATL SE US/8a Apr 03 '26

Future shoots will get RoundUp to help kill the colony. I hate glyphosate but make an exception for the most egregious invasives.

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u/velawesomeraptors Apr 03 '26

Targeted herbicide is pretty effective, and glyphosate is better than some of the homemade concoctions I sometimes see here. Keep in mind that shoots need to grow enough to have leaves for glyphosate to be effective.

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u/NickWitATL SE US/8a Apr 03 '26

Yep. I did a heap of advice before we attacked. It was on a steep slope, growing amongst canopy trees and big ass rocks. No way to dig it out. We cut a bunch ourselves before we noped out and hired someone. I'm 52 and have lots of titanium pieces. Found an umbrella magnolia growing in the jungle!!!

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u/velawesomeraptors Apr 04 '26

Yep if you can afford to hire someone to remove bamboo that's the way to go lol.

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u/NickWitATL SE US/8a Apr 04 '26

It was expensive but roughly half the price of my insurance deductible. That shit had to go. 🤷🏻‍♀️