Butterfly Gardens

My Field of Dreams

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BUTTERFLY GARDENS

Creating a Butterfly Habitat in the home garden-

NECTAR PLANTS- Butterflies smell with their antennae and taste with their feet. Choose heirloom and native plants in shades of purple and yellow, then white, blue, and red. That is the order of their favored colors. Flowers with large flat heads, or those with numerous, short tubes are very attractive to butterflies. Plant in masses of color. Coneflowers, Phlox, Joe Pye Weed, Black-Eyed-Susans, and Butterfly Bush are nice perennial choices.

WATER FEATURE- Most butterflies drink early in the morning after the sun warms their wings. Adding pebbles to a shallow dish at ground level makes the perfect "butterfly bath." It can be made of almost any material. A concrete birdbath without the pedestal works well. A rock with natural depressions looks wonderful in the rock garden. Adding extra rocks or paving stones to a garden with a southern exposure allow the butterflies to bask in the sun. The water feature can be filled with fresh water, or left dry to catch the morning dew. Adding moist soil to a water feature invites the Swallowtail and other butterflies to mud-puddle. They receive nutrients from moist soil, carrion, or manure.

SHELTER- Shelters are needed to protect a chrysalis or hibernating butterfly. They slow down gusts of wind and protect from heavy rain. Butterflies also use them to roost overnight and on chilly days. Some are man-made, like fences or a wooden jungle gym. Other shelters occur naturally as fallen trees or dense evergreens and shrubs. They should be waterproof and provide ample shade. A good shelter can be constructed like a wood pile shaped in a grid. A tarp should be placed over the top, and viewing holes can be cut to watch roosting butterflies.

HOST PLANTS- These are the plants that the butterflies choose to raise their young on. Planting these throughout the garden bed with nectar plants will help hide the nibbled foliage. These attract an enormous amount of butterflies. The butterflies will stay longer during the day, and longer into the fall season. Pesticides should never be used, as these will kill caterpillars, as well as the butterflies. Many vegetables and herbs are host plants. Plants used strictly for culinary use should be planted away from the butterfly garden and covered with mesh crop covers. Caterpillars can be raised in the home with an indoor pavilion or nursery.

Butterfly Species	Favored Nectar Plant	Favored Host Plant
Pipe Vine Swallowtail* (Battus philenor)	butterfly bush, lilac, azalea, petunia	pipe vine, Dutchman's Pipe
Black Swallowtail(Papilio poluxenes*)	butterfly weed, phlox, clover, thistle	various carrot family members: carrot, celery, dill, fennel, parsley
Tiger Swallowtail* (Papilio glaucus)	butterfly bush, lilac, honeysuckle, butterfly weed	wild cherry, willow, cottonwood, tulip poplar, magnolia
Checkered White (Pontia protodice)	aster, butterfly weed, centaury	various mustard family members: mustard, turnip, cabbage
European Cabbage Butterfly (Pieris rapae)	lantana, impatiens, mint, dandelion	various mustard members; cultivated vegetables: cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, radish; and nasturtium
Clouded Sulfur (Colias philodice)	aster, goldenrod, phlox, clover	members of the pea family, especially clover, lupine , baptista
Small (American) Copper (Lycaena phlaeas)	butterfly weed, goldenrod, yarrow, buttercup	sheep sorrel, curled dock
Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus)	goldenrod, milkweed, clover, winter cress	many plants, including hibiscus, clover, mallow, beans, vetch, hollyhock
Spring Azure (Celastrina ladon)	rockcress, buckeye, violet, winter cress, dandelion	various trees & shrubs: dogwood, viburnum, blueberry
Variegated Fritillary (Euptoieta claudia)	butterfly weed, clover, shepherd’s-needle, milkweed	many plants, including violets, passion vine, stonecrop
Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele)	gloriosa daisy, thistle, verbena, butterfly weed	various species of violet
Pearl Crescent (Phycoides tharos)	composites like thistle, aster, gloriosa daisy	various species of aster
American Painted Lady (Vanessa virginiensis)	marigold, goldenrod, aster, butterfly bush	various types of everlasting, daisy
Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)	aster, cosmos, thistle, buttonbush	variety of plants like thistle, mallow, hollyhock
Buckeye (Junonia coenia)	aster, coreopsis, knapweed, chicory	plantain, snapdragon, toadflax
Monarch (Danaus plexippus)	milkweed, lantana, lilac, cosmos, goldenrod, zinnia	milkweed and milkweed family
Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus)	zinnia, honeysuckle, butterfly weed, joe-pyeweed	various species of locust
Checkered Skipper (Pyrgus communis)	aster, fleabane, knapweed, shepherd’s-needle	various members of the mallow family and hollyhock
Eastern Comma*		elm, hops, nettle
Giant Swallowtail*		citrus, prickly ash, rue, gas plant, hop tree
Mourning Cloak		aspen, elm, willow
Question Mark*		elm, hops, nettle
Red Admiral*		nettle, hops
Red-Spotted Purple**		willow, cherry, poplar, aspen, hawthorn
Viceroy		willow, aspen, cherry, plum

* - adult butterflies like mud puddles * - adult butterflies like fruit

BUTTERFLY SHELTER

Butterfly Nectar Recipe

9 parts water/1 part sugar

1. Bring water to a boil.
2. Add sugar.
3. Mix until dissolved
4. Cool before using.

Refrigerate unused solution.
Keeps for up to 2 weeks.