Butterflies provide a wonderful, colorful addition to any garden. They will also make your garden feel alive and create fun and interest for children in the garden. In order for butterflies to feel safe, create a sheltered, organic haven for them in a sunny area that does not get strong winds.

Nectar: Nectar is the key to attracting adult butterflies to your garden – the more nectar in a flower, the more popular the plant will be. Year-round blooms will supply a continuous source of nectar. Different species of butterflies have varied preferences of nectar. Planting a diverse variety of flowers will allow your garden to attract a greater number of butterflies.
Flowers with flat-topped or clustered blossoms with short flower tubes allow the butterflies to reach the nectar more easily. Adult butterflies are attracted to flowers with red, orange, yellow, purple, and pink blossoms.

Sun worshippers: Butterflies must warm their wings for flight. If they are too cold, they cannot fly. Add a few flat stones where they can spread their wings, bask in the sun, and absorb its warmth.

Puddling: In order to supplement their diet, butterflies will “puddle,” or gather on a puddle as they sip the water for dissolved minerals. Provide a birdbath or a shallow saucer of water for quenching their thirst. Place some coarse sand in the bottom of the container. (Be sure to keep it clean and fresh – you do not want a mosquito breeding area.)

Caterpillars: The graceful butterfly reminds us that everything in life must have balance. You must endure the munching of the caterpillar to enjoy the splendor of the lovely butterfly. To truly provide a home for butterflies, rather than just a visiting area for adults, you will need to include plants that are preferred as food by the caterpillar. Butterflies will lay their eggs on these plants.
Learn how to identify the larvae of butterflies so you don’t dismiss them as other pests and remove them from your garden before they have a chance to transform. You might see some chewed foliage, but usually there will be no permanent plant damage.

Enjoy your butterfly garden and remember to tread lightly as you walk through their world!

Julia Strzesieski is the marketing coordinator at Cole Hardware and can be reached at [email protected].

 

Butterfly nectar flowers (N) and larval food plants (L) to try:

Annuals:
Ageratum (N)
Cosmos (N)
Heliotrope (N)
Lupine (N)
Marigold (N)
Mimulus (L)
Nasturtium (N)
Nicotiana (N)
Pentas (N)
Petunia (N)
Salvia (N)
Scabiosa (N)
Schizanthus (Butterfly flower) (N)
Snapdragons (N, L)
Statice (N)
Zinnia (N)

Perennials:
Asclepias (Butterfly weed) (N, L)
Aster (N, L)
Coreopsis (N)
Lupine (N)
Daisy (N)
Yarrow (N)
Echinacea (Purple coneflower) (N)
Gaillardia (N)
Passion vines (L)
Rudbeckia (N)

Shrubs and Trees:
Buddleia (Butterfly bush) (N)

Herbs:
Chives (N)
Dill (N, L)
Citrus (L)
Lavender (N)
Mint (N)
Parsley (N, L)
Rosemary (N)