Plant
Butterfly, Moth & Bee
Plants - Backyards and other small
areas may have a limited value when managing for larger species like
deer, but they are extremely valuable for many other species. With
planning and a little work, these areas can easily be managed to
benefit nectar-seekers such as hummingbirds and butterflies.
By promoting plant species and habitat components
that are beneficial to hummingbirds and butterflies, you can insure
their colorful presence. This publication highlights key steps to
protect and provide the important habitat areas needed by
hummingbirds and butterflies.
Butterflies are among the most beautiful insects on
earth---and one of the few insects we desire to see in our flower
gardens! Their colorful wings add a decorator's touch to our gardens
as they flutter from flower to flower in search for nectar. Most
gardeners wish they could attract more butterflies to their
property.
Attracting
butterflies to your garden involves essentially two things: (1)
planting the right flowers in the right place, and (2) refraining
from the use of chemical insecticides. To attract more species of
butterflies, you could add to the butterfly garden a mud puddle, a
bowl of rotting fruit, and/or mammal manure. With or without these
additional lures, however, many butterflies will be enticed to visit
a garden that provides desirable nectar sources which are not
poisoned with insecticides. The location of your property plays a
role in determining how many butterfly species might visit your
garden for flower nectar. Some species of butterflies prefer open
areas while others elect to reside near wet meadows or deciduous
forests. Thus, a person living in an open rural area, near a stream
or swamp, and adjacent to a deciduous forest will likely attract
more species of butterflies to his or her garden than will a city
dweller.
The best position
for a butterfly garden is in full sun. Butterflies are cold-blooded
insects that can only fly well when their body temperatures are
above 70 degrees F. You have probably noticed that butterfly
activity is limited on cool, cloudy days and increased on warm,
sunny days. Without warmth, butterflies are physically unable to
fly. It is
advisable to plant the butterfly garden in a location that is
sheltered from the wind. Wind currents make flight maneuver
difficult for butterflies and require the expenditure of extra
energy as they try to feed, mate, and lay eggs. A wind break can be
provided by simply planting evergreens to protect the garden from
prevailing winds.
When deciding on
the plants to incorporate into your butterfly garden, choose a
mixture of annuals and perennials. Annuals bloom all summer but must
be replanted every spring (after the last frost). Perennials bloom
year after year from the same roots but their blooming periods are
typically limited to a few weeks or months. To enable the sight of most of the
flowers (and butterflies) in your garden, plant the shortest flowers
in front and the tallest ones in the back. Plant flower species in
masses as butterflies seem to choose those flowers that are most
abundant. Being equipped with a highly sensitive sense of smell,
butterflies are able to identify clusters of nectar flowers from
quite a distance.
Across the United
States, there seems to be little consensus on the flower color or
flower species that most attracts butterflies. Some experts claim
that butterflies prefer purple, lavender, and pink flowers. Others
proclaim red, yellow, and blue blossoms to be the color preference
of nectar-seeking butterflies. Some butterfly gardeners insist that
Lantana is an excellent butterfly-attracting plant while others
insist that it is not. It is likely the case that different species of butterflies
show a preference for different species of flowers. And since
different species of butterflies inhabit different regions of the
U.S., different flowers may be utilized for nectar in different
regions.
The
selection of flowers offered as nectar sources also plays a role in
what the butterflies choose as nectar sources. If a garden includes
butterfly bushes, Mexican sunflowers, and purple coneflowers, you
will likely find most of the feeding butterflies on these flowers.
If hungry butterflies do not have the option of feeding on butterfly
bushes, Mexican sunflowers, and purple coneflowers though, they will
settle for something less desirable just to get their hunger
satisfied.
Though avid
North American butterfly gardeners may disagree on many aspects of
butterfly gardening, they tend to agree that every butterfly garden
should include butterfly bushes (Buddleia davidii).
Throughout the United States, the flowers of butterfly bush prove to
be irresistable to many species of butterflies. Butterfly bushes
grow 4' to 12' high, depending upon the variety chosen. Blooming mid
July through frost, their fragrant flower spikes may be white,
lavender, pink, or purple.
Among the best
perennials for attracting butterflies to the garden for feeding are
butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), swamp milkweed
(Asclepias incarnata), purple coneflower (Echinacea
purpurea), Stoke's aster (Stokesia laevis), tickseed
(Coreopsis), lavender (Lavandula), blanket flower
(Gaillardia aristata, Gaillardia grandiflora)), Joe-Pye weed
(Eupatorium purpureum), and pincushion flower (Scabiosa
columbaria). Other perennials utilized as butterfly nectar
sources include black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia), dame's rocket
(Hesperis matrolalis), hardy ageratum (Eupatorium
coelestinum), heliopsis (Heliopsis helianthoides),
ornamental oregano (Origanum lacvigatum), pinks
(Dianthus), showy stonecrop (Sedum spectabile),
beebalm (Monarda didyma), goldenrod (Solidago),
red valerian (Centranthus), daylily (Hemerocallis),
hyssop (Hyssopus), Phlox, and
Aster.
To ensure
the availability of nectar sources throughout the summer,
long-blooming annuals should be planted between the perennials you
choose for planting. Zinnia, tropical milkweed, Mexican
sunflower, cosmos, verbena, lantana, pentas, strawflower, and
heliotrope are good annual choices for the butterfly garden.
Experiment with different flower colors to determine what the
butterflies in your area seem to prefer. Just by planting the right flowers in the
right place, you will likely attract many species of butterflies to
your garden. Amidst these butterflies will probably be Monarchs,
Swallowtails, Painted Ladies, Red Admirals, Fritillaries,
Hairstreaks, Coppers, and Crescents. While flower nectar is the chief food
source for most butterflies, a few butterfly species prefer to feast
on rotting fruit, mud, and/or mammal manure. Red Admirals,
Red-spotted Purples, Commas, and Mourning Cloaks are among those
butterflies that sometimes dine on rotting fruit. Spring Azures,
Eastern Tailed Blues, Sulphurs, and Swallowtails are known to
extract nutrients from mud. Viceroys, Red Admirals, Meadow
Fritillaries, and other butterfly species periodically feast on
mammal manure.
Butterflies add
beauty to our world and fascinate people of every age. Entice
butterflies to visit your own back yard by planting the flowers that
most appeal to them!