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Educational Resources


One thing about nature is that you can never know everything there is to know. There is always something new to discover and new questions to ask. We love learning, digging into the research to find out what new information scientists are discovering, and then sharing that new knowledge with others.

Below are some of the educational resources we recommend. Some are ones we produce. Others are resources that we use ourselves and recommend to others. Check back often, because we’ll be updating as we find or create additional resources that we think you might find valuable.


The Backyard Ecology Community

The Backyard Ecology Community is for busy homeowners in the eastern U.S. who want to confidently create and maintain their pollinator and wildlife habitat.

We created the community as a safe place to ask questions, learn, celebrate accomplishments, and help each other attract more pollinators and wildlife.

Become a member of the Backyard Ecology Community today and say good-by to…

🌱 trying to figure it all out on your own,

🌱 feeling frustrated and overwhelmed by information overload, and

🌱 struggling with generic, cookie-cutter solutions that never seem quite β€œright” for your situation.


Native Plants 101 Workshop: Select the Right Native Plants for Your Eastern U.S. Garden

This live, interactive, online workshop will help you confidently choose native plants that will work in your yard, look good, AND attract pollinators and wildlife.

Registration is required and includes workshop replay and bonuses.


Recent Backyard Ecology Videos

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Recent Backyard Ecology Blog Articles

Recent Backyard Ecology Podcast Episodes


Presentations

Shannon offers a variety of online classes and gives both virtual and in-person presentations for clubs, libraries, Extension Offices, and other organizations. Check out our Events page to learn more about her upcoming presentations and other events. You can also visit her author and speaker website to learn more about the types of programs she does and how to schedule her for an upcoming event.


Books*

* Some of the links below are Amazon links and those are affiliate links. Amazon pays us a small commission for purchases made through these links, but it comes at no extra cost to you. All commissions that we receive through these links goes toward producing free educational content through Backyard Ecology. We appreciate your support.

Free trials

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Animals

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πŸŽ™οΈ indicates that the author was a guest on the Backyard Ecology podcast

Bees: An Identification and Native Plant Forage Guide
By: Heather N. Holm (πŸŽ™οΈ)
The Bees in Your Backyard: A Guide to North America’s Bees
By: Joseph S. Wilson and Olivia Messinger Carril
Caterpillars of Eastern North America: A Guide to Identification and Natural History
By: David Wagner
Common Bees of Eastern North America
By: Olivia Messinger Carril and Joseph S. Wilson
Field Guide to the Flower Flies of Northeastern North America
By: Jeffrey H Skevington (πŸŽ™οΈ), Michelle M. Locke (πŸŽ™οΈ), Andrew D. Young, Kevin Moran, William J Crins, and Stephen A. Marshall
Fireflies, Glow-worms, and Lightning Bugs: Identification and Natural History of the Fireflies of the Eastern and Central United States and Canada
By: Lynn Frierson Faust (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of North America
By: Jim P. Brock and Kenn Kaufman
Land Snails of West Virginia
By: Daniel C. Dourson (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Peterson Field Guide to Birds of Eastern and Central North America, 7th Edition
By: Roger Tory Peterson
Peterson Field Guide to Moths of Northeastern North America
By: David Beadle and Seabrooke Leckie
Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians Eastern and Central North America
By: Robert Powell, Roger Conant, and Joseph T. Collins
National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, 7th Edition
By: Jonathan Alderfer
A Swift Guide to Butterflies of North America: Second Edition
By: Jeffrey Glassberg
A Tale of Two Broods: The 2024 Emergence of Periodical Cicada Broods XIII and XIX
By: Gene Kritsky (πŸŽ™οΈ)
The Warbler Guide
By: Tom Stephenson and Scott Whittle
Wasps: Their Biology, Diversity, and Role as Beneficial Insects and Pollinators of Native Plants
By: Heather N. Holm (πŸŽ™οΈ)

Lichens

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Field Guide to the Lichens of Great Smoky Mountains National Park
By: Erin Tripp and James Lendemer (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Urban Lichens: A Field Guide for Northeastern North America
By: Jessica L. Allen and James C. Lendemer (πŸŽ™οΈ)

Native Plants

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πŸŽ™οΈ indicates that the author was a guest on the Backyard Ecology podcast

100 Plants to Feed the Monarch: Create a Healthy Habitat to Sustain North America’s Most Beloved Butterfly
By: The Xerces Society
Flora of the Southeastern U.S.
Alan S. Weakley (πŸŽ™οΈ) and the Southeastern Flora Team
Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses
By: James H. Miller and Karl V. Miller
Gardening With the Native Plants of Tennessee: The Spirit of Place
By: Margie Hunter
The Gardener’s Guide to Prairie Plants
By: Neil Diboll (πŸŽ™οΈ) and Hilary Cox (πŸŽ™οΈ)
The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees
By: Douglas W. Tallamy
Trees of Eastern North America
By: Gil Nelson, Christopher J. Earle, and Richard Spellenberg
Wildflowers and Ferns of Kentucky
By: Thomas G. Barnes and S. Wilson Francis
Wildflowers of Mammoth Cave National Park
By: Randy Seymour
Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast
By: Laura Cotterman, Damon Waitt, and Alan Weakley (πŸŽ™οΈ)

Creating Pollinator and Wildlife Habitat

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πŸŽ™οΈ indicates that the author was a guest on the Backyard Ecology podcast

Attract Pollinators and Wildlife to Your Yard: 15 Free and Easy Ways
By: Shannon Trimboli
Attracting Native Pollinators: The Xerces Society Guide, Protecting North America’s Bees and Butterflies
By: The Xerces Society
Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants
By: Douglas W. Tallamy
Garden Revolution: How Our Landscapes Can Be a Source of Environmental Change
By: Larry Weaner (πŸŽ™οΈ) and Thomas Christopher
The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden
By: Rick Darke and Douglas W. Tallamy
Native Plants for the Small Yard: Easy, Beautiful Home Gardens that Support Local Ecology
By: Kate Brandes (πŸŽ™οΈ) and Lehigh Gap Nature Center
Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard
By: Douglas W. Tallamy
Nature at Your Door, Connecting with the Wild and Green in the Urban and Suburban Landscape
By: Sarah GagnΓ© (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants
By: Heather N. Holm (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Wetland Drainage, Restoration, and Repair
By: Thomas R. Biebighauser (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Wetland Restoration and Construction A Technical Guide
By: Thomas R. Biebighauser (πŸŽ™οΈ)

Children’s Books

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Bugs Don’t Hug: Six-Legged Parents and Their Kids
By: Heather L. Montgomery (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Something Rotten: A Fresh Look at Roadkill
By: Heather L. Montgomery (πŸŽ™οΈ)
What’s in Your Pocket?: Collecting Nature’s Treasures
By: Heather L. Montgomery (πŸŽ™οΈ)
Who Gives a Poop?: Surprising Science from One End to the Other
By: Heather L. Montgomery (πŸŽ™οΈ)

Miscellaneous

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Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
By Robin Wall Kimmerer
Forgotten Grasslands of the South: Natural History and Conservation
By: Reed F. Noss
Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder
By: Richard Louv
Plants Honey Bees Use in the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys
By: Shannon Trimboli
A Sand County Almanac: And Sketches Here and There
By: Aldo Leopold

Equipment*

* Some of the links below are Amazon links and those are affiliate links. Amazon pays us a small commission for purchases made through these links, but it comes at no extra cost to you. All commissions that we receive through these links goes toward producing free educational content through Backyard Ecology. We appreciate your support.

Click on an image to learn more and purchase the item.

Get a 30-day free trial of Amazon Prime
Rite In The Rain Journal
Vortex Optics Diamondback HD 8×42 Binoculars

Apps

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FloraQuest Northern Tier
By: Alan S. Weakley (πŸŽ™οΈ) and the Southeastern Flora Team
FloraQuest Carolinas & Georgia
By: Alan S. Weakley (πŸŽ™οΈ) and the Southeastern Flora Team
Merlin
By: The Cornell Lab of Ornithology