Our Story

Why is Backyard Ecology™ Important?

It’s easy to fall into the trap of believing that nature can only be found in some far-off, pristine, wilderness. But the truth is that nature is everywhere and there are still plenty of discoveries to be made about the common species inhabiting our yards and communities.

Also, because nature is everywhere and there is still so much to learn, we can make valuable contributions to our local ecosystems and to a better understanding of the organisms that share our yards and communities. This is especially true in the eastern U.S. where most of the land is privately owned. But first, we must value and appreciate the nature right outside our doors.

Backyard Ecology™ strives to foster that appreciation while creating a fun, educational experience and community that helps you transform your yard into a thriving ecosystem which you can enjoy and be proud of.

Robin building a nest

Why we created Backyard Ecology™

We know how hard it can be to get habitat management answers from the internet or social media groups. It can be overwhelming, contradictory, and sometimes downright nasty. Not to mention, how do you know if that information is even scientifically valid? That’s why we created Backyard Ecology™.

We want to help you be good stewards of your land and leave a positive ecological legacy while having fun learning about the plants, pollinators, and wildlife that can be found in your yard and community.

Bicolored sweat bee in cup plant flower

Find your next step

Let us help you discover your next step towards creating a thriving backyard ecosystem you can enjoy and be proud of.

Who are we?

The short story

We are Shannon and Anthony Trimboli. We currently live in southcentral Kentucky, but we grew up hundreds of miles apart – Anthony in Indiana and Shannon in Kentucky.

We’ve both always loved nature and the outdoors, even from a very early age. Much of our childhoods were spent exploring the “wilder areas” of our yards and neighborhoods, chasing critters, and playing in the dirt. Like anyone who is passionate about something, we also loved to share our love of nature with just about anyone who would listen to us.

When it came time to go to college, we both chose to major in wildlife biology and out of all the universities out there, somehow we both chose the same one. That’s where we met. We became almost instant friends, and one thing led to another until we graduated and got married.

Professionally, we’ve worked with a wide variety of animals and plants. Our passion for sharing our love of nature also followed us into our careers with both of us holding multiple conservation and environmental education positions.

Eventually, we both went back to college while working part-time to obtain our Masters’ degrees. Shannon got hers in ecology and Anthony got his in agriculture.

Shannon Trimboli
Anthony Trimboli

Fireflies and a shift in our thinking

When we first met, we both thought we wanted to go somewhere far away and exotic to live and work because that’s where all the “interesting” animals were found and all the “important” scientific discoveries were to be made.

However, as we were both bouncing around for summer jobs in college, we came to the same realization – we really liked Kentucky and the ecosystems found here. We also realized that we were wrong in thinking that we didn’t have any interesting animals or important scientific discoveries to be made in this part of the world.

We were just so familiar with the wildlife and plants around us that we took them for granted. This became especially clear to Shannon one evening while visiting Anthony’s grandparents.

Some of Anthony’s distant cousins from Australia happened to be visiting at the same time and we had all gone out to eat. When we came out of the restaurant, the fireflies were going crazy. The kids had never seen fireflies and were a little nervous about them.

Shannon had always loved fireflies and couldn’t imagine not having grown up catching them. Yet, that night she saw just how special her beloved fireflies were, especially since Australia was one of those places that she had always believed held all the “cool” and “interesting” animals compared to the ones she had grown up with.

And, yes, while the other adults talked, she quickly reverted back to a kid at heart and taught Anthony’s young Australian cousins the joys of catching fireflies.

Globe
firefly on butterfly milkweed flower

A dream came true, then life happened…

We always knew that we wanted to own acreage, but it took us a while to make that dream come true. However, when we finally found our farm, we both fell in love with it.

It has almost everything we wanted on our dream property. (Anthony wishes it had a swamp. Shannon wishes it had limestone bluffs. And of course it could ALWAYS be bigger. But it’s about as close to perfect as we could realistically hope to find.)

Before the sale had even been completed, we were dreaming of all the habitat projects we were going to do on our new property. And then shortly after the paperwork was signed, life happened. Then it happened again. And again.

Priorities had to shift for several years and while we were able to do some smaller projects, our big habitat dreams had to be postponed. We hated it, but it was unavoidable.

On top of all that, Shannon was trying to write her first book AND start a native plant nursery that included habitat consulting, while she was also working a full-time job. As if all that wasn’t enough, she also began writing the blog which eventually evolved into Backyard Ecology™.

For a while, we were spending so much time helping others with their properties, that we didn’t have time to do much on our own property. (Isn’t there an old story about a cobbler whose kids had to go barefoot because he was making shoes for everyone else….?)

That’s not to say we weren’t doing anything on our property. We just weren’t doing as much as we’d like. Now, however, we’ve learned how to do a better job of balancing everything and are getting back on track and actively working on some of those long delayed habitat projects.

Our barn with a tree in front
pale purple coneflower seedlings

Lessons learned so we can better help you

All those stops and starts and shifting priorities gave us new perspectives and understanding. We had to learn how to deal with all of the unexpected curve balls that life threw at us and to not beat ourselves up over not being able to do EVERYTHING at once.

It was hard, and we’re still learning those lessons. But going through all that has also allowed us to better relate to the struggles and challenges that others are facing in their habitat projects.

We know from personal experience that it’s not all about gardening, managing the land, or doing “all the things” to attract pollinators and wildlife. It’s also about dealing with all those “life happens” events and finding a balance between our habitat goals and everything else going on in our lives.

Throughout it all, our love of nature and passion for sharing that love with others never faltered. Instead, it has grown and expanded. Now, not only can we talk about the plants and animals and how they all interact, but we can also share our real-life, been-there-done-that experiences.

Those are the experiences and lessons learned which are invaluable and that we want to share – the ones that stop the endless spinning and overthinking so you can find a realistic balance between accomplishing your habitat goals and taking care of all the other things in your life.

One of our personal goals for Backyard Ecology™ is to help you avoid some of the mistakes we’ve made so you can achieve your own habitat dreams even faster and easier.

Spicebush swallowtail butterfly on butterfly milkweed flowers
Fall leaves in our woods

Want to stay in touch?

Want to get to know us a little better and make sure you never miss out on anything in the Backyard Ecology™ world, while also getting tips, stories, and other tidbits not found in our other content?

Then join the over 4,000 other Backyard Ecologists™ who have subscribed to the free The Backyard Ecologist’s Newsletter.

Backyard Ecology™’s Guiding Principles:

🦋 Curiosity: Nature is fun, interesting, and worth exploring. We will never know everything. Answers lead to more questions. That’s half the fun.

🦋 Balanced: You don’t have to choose. You can support nature AND have a beautiful property that you can enjoy and be proud of.

🦋 Science informed: Habitat creation and management should be based on the latest scientific research available. This is true regardless of whether you’re working in a small garden or on hundreds of acres.

🦋 Stewardship: Anyone can make a positive difference in the natural world and leave an ecological legacy on their property.