Butterfly Gardening -- Easy and Rewarding

Joe-Pye weed is a native plant and a butterfly favorite.

 

 

 

When you are purchasing plants for garden beds or containers, consider planting a tasty treat to attract butterflies.  With select plant choices and very little effort, you can host a butterfly buffet and enjoy watching the colorful activity all summer long. 

            Butterfly gardens need full sun.  For best results, plant en masse, with groupings instead of a scattered variety of plants.  Imagine what your garden looks like from the above.  Instead of planting one coneflower, plant a grouping of them, with another grouping of perennials next to that.  Planting en masse gives the same impact as color blocking in floral design.  You should also select a combination of plants to provide blooms all summer long and into the fall. Adding annuals along with your perennials can help achieve extended bloom time. 

            There are two ways to attract butterflies.  One is to simply offer nectar plants to feed adult butterflies.  The other is to add host plants to the mix.  These are the plants that butterflies lay their eggs on as a food source for the caterpillars.   Butterflies lay eggs on host specific plants.  The monarch caterpillars may defoliate your milkweed plant, but they won’t chew on anything else in your garden.  Avoid the use of  pesticides in your butterfly garden.  Chemicals that kill unwanted pests can kill butterflies and caterpillars too.  Native plants are always a smart choice.  Here is a list of the best plants to attract butterflies.

Nectar plants to attract butterflies:

A Common Buckeye on a coneflowe.r

 

Coneflower

Tall Verbena

Lantana

Butterfly Bush

Milkweed

 

Aster

Sunflower

Zinnia

A Monarch on lantana.

 

Joe-Pye-weed

Homestead verbena

Monarda/bee balm

 

 

Host plants for caterpillars:

Artmesisia       (host plant for the American Lady)

Coneflower     (Silvery Checkerspot)

Dill                   (Eastern Black Swallowtail)

Fennel             (Eastern Black Swallowtail)

A Monarch caterpillar eating milkweed.

Milkweed        (Monarch, Queen)

Snapdragon     (Common Buckeye)

Hollyhock        (Painted Lady)

Passion Vine    (Variegated Fritillary)

If you plant dill or fennel in your herb garden for use in cooking, consider planting a few extra to share with the beautiful Eastern Black Swallowtail caterpillars.  If you want to attract Monarchs with milkweed, purchase plants from your nursery.  Do not introduce wild milkweed into your garden because it is very invasive.   If you plant passion vine, give it plenty of room because it grows rapidly.  Some butterflies rely on larger host plants that you may already have in your yard.  The Tiger Swallowtail butterfly lays eggs on Sweet Bay Magnolias and Tulip Poplars.  Viceroys and Red Spotted Purples lay their eggs on willow trees. 

One of the most useful books about butterflies and habitat gardening for butterflies is The Life Cycle of Butterflies by Burris and Richards.