Catchfly Commons

Background of Catchfly Commons

Catchfly Commons is a 1.3 acre residential property on the south side of Delaware in central Ohio. It is within the Olentangy River watershed. Catchfly Commons hosts approximately 275 species of native herbaceous plants, shrubs, and trees planted in a variety of light, moisture, and soil conditions. The property was mostly lawn with a few…

October Imagery and Notes

The transition to fall is underway in October, but it seems a bit slower this year with the warmer temperatures. The attention of pollinators shifted from goldenrods to asters, particularly our latest bloomers… the aromatic asters (Raydon’s Favorite, October Skies, and straight species). There is still some butterfly and caterpillar activity. We are on the…

Video Series on Asters, Goldenrods and Coneflowers

Terri and I have done presentations about asters, goldenrods, and coneflowers to several groups. We heard they were helpful, so we took sections of the presentation and created a series of videos. The series includes: Part 1: Overview, Classification, the Asteraceae Family (Length ~ 6:16) Part 2: Asters (Length ~ 10:25) Part 3: Goldenrods (Length…

September Imagery and Notes

In September, the landscape is full of contrasts. Many plants are heading to dormancy with blooms spent and in some cases ready to cast about their trove of seeds. Other plants are just hitting their stride. Goldenrods are changing the topology of beds as they shoot up above their neighbors with masses of small sunny…

Biodiversity at Catchfly Commons

We use iNaturalist to identify and record our observations of biodiversity on our property. To get a good sense of biodiversity here, visit the “Catchfly Commons” project page in iNaturalist. You do not need to be an iNaturalist user to view it. On the page you will find all of our observations over the years…

Like Us on Facebook!

This is just a reminder that we have a Facebook page as well as our blog/website. We use the Facebook page to share photos, observations, and news between our periodic blog posts. Like us on Facebook! Here are a couple of recent examples from the Facebook page.

August Imagery and Notes

August has been delightful so far. The pace is different… lingering now is a way of being in the garden. We are in maintenance mode so more time is available to enjoy and be present (plus photography). Insects are lingering as well. Four or five monarchs have taken up residence. They flit and sail along…

Open Garden Sept 20, 2025 (10am – 3pm)

This September we are hosting an Open Garden to enjoy the beauty of asters and goldenrods. In April we welcomed spring blooms and in July the robust colors of the season’s peak. Now as we enter fall, we delight in vivid blues and golds as the garden starts to wane. Add to Calendar | Directions…

Mothing Night (8.4.2025)

Last Monday night we did some family mothing. After some yummy S’mores and Jiffy Pop, our adult daughter, son-in-law, three year old grandson, Terri, and I hunted for caterpillars using blacklight flashlights. I also set up a mothing sheet. Our set up uses a stretched white sheet with both a reptile heat lamp (in lieu…

July Vistas

The first half of July provided peak blooms and color in the landscape! We hope our Open Garden visitors enjoyed the show. Something new this month is drone imagery! Following the notes below, there are sections of drone imagery, July photos, and then landscape videos. July Notes Drone Imagery It is hard to convey Catchfly…

Thank You July Guests!

Despite the heat, we had a wonderful turn out for our July 5, 2025 open garden! Over 300 persons visited Catchfly Commons! We met many first time visitors and reconnected with returning friends. The growing interest in native plant gardening is so heartening! We want to thank: The following week we had two times for…