Creating a Butterfly Garden

If you can plant a regular garden, then you can plant a butterfly garden.

It's that easy!



The only major difference between a regular garden and a butterfly garden is the types of plant; some are much better butterfly attractors than others. A selection of proven butterfly attractors is listed below, but before we get to the plants themselves, there are a couple of general tips which will greatly increase the success of your garden.


Left: Queen (Danaus gilippus) on milkweed





Nectar and Larval Plants



Butterfly plants can be divided into two categories: nectar plants and larval plants. Nectar plants are a source of food for the adult butterly while larval plants are a source of food for the caterpillar. Be prepared to accept having holes chewed in your plants. Some plants, such as the milkweed, are both nectar and larval plants.


Butterfly Plant Gallery

Pentas (Pentas lanceolota)
 This is by far the most popular plant in the garden. It is strictly a nectar plant and the number one butterfly attractor (it has even been known to attract the odd humming bird or two). Pentas come in three main colors; red, pink, and white. Red is the best. The white, although it makes a nice contrast, has never been a great butterfly attractor in my garden. The butterflies skip over it in favor of the red pentas or a totally different plant. It grows into a nice shrub-like plant, to a height of about four feet, and so makes a nice backdrop for the garden. Beware that it is cold sensitive and needs to be covered in the event of cold weather. If it does get hit by the cold and shrivels into a brown shadow of its former self, simply cut it back to about six inches after the threat of cold weather has passed and it will spring back to life. Just be a little patient, it takes a while, but it is better to keep a plant whose root system is established than to plant another.

Above Left: Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) on Pentas


 Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
This is both a nectar and a larval plant. If you want to attract Monarchs or Queens to your garden, it is a must. Milkweeds grow three to four feet and bloom with orange flowers. They are an attractive plant up top, but somewhat "leggy" on the bottom. I would recommend planting a smaller plant in front of them to hide the ugly stalks. Milkweeds are the larval plants for Monarchs and Queens and are also quite popular as a nectar plant for other species. Male Monarchs often patrol around the milkweeds, waiting for a female, and you may find you have the same butterfly circling around your garden for a couple of weeks. Once you have purchased your initial plants, you will find that you don't have to buy any more. When the seed pods burst, you will find little milkweeds springing up all over your garden (and probably your neighbors', too!)

Passionvine (Passiflora sp.)
Passionvine comes in a variety of leaf types and flower colors. It is an excellent plant for covering a trellis. It is the larval food plant of the Gulf Fritillary and Zebra Longwing butterflies. Gulf Fritillaries are abundant in my yard, and there is enough passionvine to support numerous caterpillars. Zebra Longwings are less frequent visitors, and even though I have seen them deposit eggs on the plants, no caterpillars have ever matured.



Lantana (Lantana sp.)
This is another excellent nectar plant. It is actually a Florida weed, so it grows extremely well in my location. There are various species, ranging in color and size. The colors most commonly seen are yellow, white, orange, and lavender. Lantana can either be a low, one to two foot creeping plant, or grow into a shrub three to four feet high. The various species also bloom at different times of the year. I know Fall has arrived when the lavender lantana blooms and the White Peacocks arrive in the garden. Lantana can be trimmed time and time again, whatever the time of year, whenever it starts getting unruly. It always grows back.

Pipevine (Aristolochia sp.)
Pipevine, commonly known as "Dutchman's Pipe," is a larval plant for the Pipevine Swallowtail and the Polydamas Swallowtail. My one specimen grows very slowly and attracts Polydamas Swallowtails very quickly. There is never enough plant to support all the caterpillars. Polydamas Swallowtail caterpillars (right) are extremely voracious and will chew the plant down to a nub. You may have to pick off a certain number of eggs to ensure that, a) your plant has chance to grow, and b) that there is enough food to support the remaining caterpillars. There's nothing sadder than watching a caterpillar crawl around a trellis which has nothing left but bare stalks upon it looking for food. Even though the Pipevine Swallowtail is named for its food plant, I have yet to see any Pipevine caterpillars on my plant, even though they are common visitors to the garden.

Dill (Anethum graveolens)
This herb is a larval food plant for the Eastern Black Swallowtail. The butterfly was an infrequent visitor before I planted the dill; traffic has definitely picked up. I have had several broods of caterpillar on the dill and many butterflies in the garden.

Right: Eastern Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes) caterpillar




Butterfly Visitors

From the above selection of plants, the following butterflies have been observed in my garden:

Plus, numerous Skippers


Other Butterfly Plants


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