What's Blooming

Today's tip: Bringing Butterflies to Your Garden

Butterflies are a welcome sight in every garden. And while they enjoy and benefit from food they find in your plants, you reciprocally enjoy their visit!

Butterflies seek out nectar as their primary food choice, so it makes sense that the key to attracting their attention is to plant nectar-rich flowers. Below you'll find a list of plants that will entice these colorful visitors. Remember, different butterflies are attracted to different flower shapes and colors - some are even attracted to culinary herbs.

There are a wide variety of plants to choose from.

• Mock Orange (Philadelphus)
• Yarrow
• Stonecrop
• Aster
• Columbine
• Butterfly Bush (Buddleia davidii)
• Phlox
• False Valerian (Centranthus)
• Cosmos
• Sweet Alyssum
• Verbena bonariensis

Simple Tips:

• Planting a group of perennials, rather than a solitary specimen, will make it easier for the butterfly to locate a new food source.


• We gardeners have a tendency to panic at the sight of caterpillars eating the leaves of our plants! Most butterfly caterpillars, however, feed on only a few plant species. Usually, it's the larvae of moth, beetle or fly species which do the most damage. Take care to correctly identify your foe before taking action.


• Avoid pesticides as these may kill off the very creatures you're trying to attract.


• Plants that nourish the butterflies during their larval stage will encourage the ongoing butterfly population in your area. (On a larger scale, the larvae also provide food for birds, spiders and various insects, which will also benefit your garden).


• Some plants considered to be weeds (for example thistle, dandelion, stinging nettle and wild carrot) are sought out by butterflies so there is a good reason for leaving some of those weeds lurking around the edges of your garden.


• Adult butterflies need moisture in addition to food and also appreciate both sun and shade, protection from wind or rain and, of course, predators.