Tom Terrific

Butterfly Gardening.Org

Bring Butterflies into Your Yard

9016 Robyn Rd
St Louis MO 63126
Phone: 314-827-6114

Grow Nectar Plants for the Butterflies

Butterflies are like kids. They won't eat what they don't like. You need to put in plants and bushes on which the butterflies like to feed.

Unfortunately, the typical flowers you'll see at local home and garden store, things like roses, petunias, geraniums, begonias, etc, are not good nectar flowers for butterflies. You can plant those flowers, but realize that you're planting the flowers for yourself and not for the butterflies.

My years of experience have led to a list of good nectar plants. Try these first before you experiment with others. It can save you money and aggravation.

Top Nectar Plants

Golden Privet (bush) - Perennial - Trim to your desired size.
In early spring, this is my top butterfly nectar plant with blossoms the butterflies love. I trim mine to keep it a certain size and it doesn't seem to hurt the bush. It will bloom through mid-July some years. I also have regular hedge Privet, but the Golden Privet seems to do much better. Don't trim off the blossoms in the spring. Wait until it's through blooming to trim it up.

Butterfly Bush - (Buddleia davidii) - Perennial - Up to 10' tall.
For the remainder of the year my top butterfly attractor is Buddleia davidii or commonly called the Butterfly Bush. You'll find these plants available just about anywhere. They are a great addition to your yard. Depending on how cold the winter is, the top growth may or may not be killed off, but the root system will usually pull through. You may want to mulch the plant in the winter to protect the roots. My plants are close to the house and have never had a problem. They will also root easily from new growth taken in the spring so you can expand your supply of plants with little cost. The plants have a tendency to get rather large, so you may want to prune them back to the ground in the early spring to keep them in check. For maximum blooming, you'll want to dead-head the old blossoms. I have the purple varieties and they do well.

Purple Coneflower - (Echinacea) - Perennial - 2' to 4' tall
Purple Coneflower is a great all around butterfly plant, with beautiful flowers and it makes a nice looking addition to the garden. There are different varieties so try a few of each to extend the blooming period. I also deadhead the flowers. You can let a few flowers go to seed for the birds. The Goldfinch in particular love dried Coneflower seeds. This is one of the few plants that will even grow in partial shade, although it won't get as large as normal.

Zinnia - Annual - 1' to 4' tall - Half to Full Day Sun.
This is a classic flower that has a place in any garden. Zinnias have a tendency to mildew, but they are so good at bringing in the butterflies, that it's worth putting up with the disease. You can try to control the mildew by watering from below so that water doesn't get on the foliage. You can also spray with a fungicide, but for me this is more trouble than it's worth. The large butterflies seem to like the large Zinnias and the small butterflies like the small Zinnias. There's a dwarf variety which makes a nice border. Park Seed has a variety which is called "Zinnia angustifolia Star Gold" which is very similar to what I grow. There are many different varieties and deadheading is important with this flower.

Verbena - Annuals and Perennials - Different Sizes - Half to Full Sun
There are many varieties of this Verbena, all of which draw butterflies to them.
Verbena canadensis is a low growing variety which will bloom most of the summer. It does need some deadheading. It may partially die back during winter, but cuttings in spring will root easily and provide many new plants. This variety is low growing, usually only one foot high and makes a nice border.

My second favorite is Verbena bonareinsis. It gets up to 5' tall, spreads out considerably, and has a tendency to mildew. You'd think this would disqualify it from the list, but it is such a good butterfly attractor that you'll want plenty for your garden. In a mild winter, the roots can stay alive and the plants will also self-seed from the previous year.

Liatris - Perennial - 3 to 5' tall
This is such an easy flower to grow that it's a shame not to have many scattered all over the garden. Each variety has specific flowering months so you'll want as many varieties as possible to keep the blooms going all summer long. The bulbs you buy at some mega-stores, Liatris spicata, Blazing Star, are particularly easy to start, grow and are inexpensive. The other varieties are more expensive, but are necessary to fill in during the later part of the season. The flowers of Liatris aspera, Rough Blazing Star, are a very nice addition to the garden in September, but these different varieties are hard to start from seed.

Asclepias Curassavica - Tropical Milkweed - Annual - 4' to 5' tall
Tropical Milkweed is a great summer and fall flower for Monarchs and many other butterflies. While it can serve as a host plant for Monarchs, it more frequently provides them with a nectar they seem to prefer. I can have twenty different plants blooming in the garden and nine times out of ten the Monarchs will go to the Tropical milkweed. It is easy to start from seed while many other of the milkweed varieties require special preparation.

Butterfly Weed - Asclepias tuberosa - Perennial - The more sun the better - 2' tall
This is another milkweed variety, which has beautiful masses of orange flowers in the spring and summer. Many butterflies are attracted to this winner. It doesn't like to be transplanted, so wherever you plant it, make sure that's it's final location. Also because it doesn't get very tall, make sure you plant it close to the front of your garden. This variety is also easy to start from seed, but may take 2 or 3 years to attain full size. It is also a host plant for Monarchs.

Globe Amaranth - Gomphrena - Various sizes - Half to Full Sun
Globe Amaranth is a nice all around flower which will attract many of the smaller butterflies to it's blossoms. There are many varieties to choose from. One of the best dwarf varieties is "Dwarf Buddy," which only grows to 12 inches tall and makes a nice border or edging.

Asters - Perennials - Various sizes - Half to Full Sun
New England Aster is the standard, but tends to be rather tall. You'll probably need to trim it regularly to keep it in check. Mine is filled with over 20 butterflies at times and it makes a spectacular display with 100's of blossoms. I have other varieties and sizes, but the New England Aster seems to bring in the most butterflies later in the year. It has the added benefit of being the host plant for the Pearl Crescent butterfly.

Salvia - Lady in Red - Annual - 2' to 3' tall - Half to Full Sun
While there are many varieties of Salvia, my favorite is the "Lady in Red" variety. It grows under poor conditions that would kill off other plants. It's a favorite of hummingbirds too. Deadhead the spent blossoms and it will bloom all summer long. It does have a tendency to take over an area. I've also seen the Summer Azure use it as a host plant.

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