Mankind's appreciation and fascination with butterflies transcends recorded history. These lovely creatures evoke
only the happiest of memories to all who chance their way.
Over the years the destruction of their habitat and the spraying of pesticides, have taken their toll. Dispite the declines,
we still have an amazing diversity of butterflies left: nearly 170,000 species have been identified to date.
To do your part helping preserve butterfly populations, creating and planting a butterfly garden is a great first step.
Your garden should contain areas of sunlight, nectar sources for adult butterflies, food sources for caterpillars, puddles, shelter,
and a rocky area. Many species are most active in sun-filled areas, so a large open area covered in low ground covers is a MUST.
Clovers mixed with grasses work great for these areas, as they provide ample sources of nectar and food.
Plant the edges of your open areas with the taller nectar and food plants to provide diversity, while still allowing the butterflies
to remain in the sun. The active season of your butterfly garden can be extended by using plants with different, but overlapping blooming seasons.
The more diverse your plantings are, the more species you are likely to attract.
Many of our wild plants or "weeds" are excellent attractors for a lot of different species. A garden filled with nothing
but dandelion, milkweed, and nettle would attract quite a respectable diversity of butterflies.
The healthiest, most attractive butterfly gardens are a balanced combination of our culivated plants, and those of nature blended together.
This mixture provides plants they can use as hosts for eggs and chrysalises, food for young caterpillars, and nectar sources for adults.
Puddles in your garden are like the butterflies "birdbath". Since they can't drink directly from open water, they will
make regular visits to, and even congregate, around puddles of wet sand or dirt.
Plants for Butterflies
Alfalfa
Apple
Aspen
Aster
Beggar-ticks
Black-eyed Susan
Blueberry
Burdock
Butterfly bush
Buttonbush
Carrot
Cherry
Daisy
Dandelion
Dogbane
Dogwood
Elm
Everlasting
False indigo
Fennel
Fireweed
Foxglove
Glasswort
|
Goldenrod
Grasses
Hackberry
Hops
Hollyhock
Ironweed
Knapweed
Lantana
Lupine
Mallow
Marigold
Milkweed
Mint
Nettle
Parsley
Passion flower
Penstemon
Peppermint
Pigweed
Pipevine
Plantain
Plum
Popular
|
Privet
Purple coneflower
Queen Anne's lace
Red Clover
Rock cress
Salt Bushe
Scabiosa
Self-heal
Snapdragon
Spicebush
Stonecrop
Sweet pepperbush
Sweet pea
Thistle
Tickseed
Verbena
Vetch
Violet
Willow
Wood nettle
Wormwood
|
