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Butterfly Gardening
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Butterfly Gardens For Your Region
Samuel Murray
I grew up in the city surrounded by asphalt and concrete
sidewalks, brick buildings and vacant lots – but there was no
lack of nature or butterflies in my life. Amid the sprawl of a
decaying urban landscape, the overgrown vacant lots choked with
‘weeds’ attracted so many butterflies that they would perch on
my shoulders and hands if I was still enough. These
‘accidental’ butterfly gardens provided all the ingredients
that butterflies require to congregate en masse. These same
ingredients can turn your garden into a fairy wonderland of
fluttering wings and color.
Over the past thirty years, butterfly gardening has become
popular, both to attract the beautiful travelers and to help
preserve species of butterflies that were dwindling due to
human encroachment into their natural habitats. If you’re
planning a butterfly garden, it’s important to keep in mind
that there is no one recipe for a successful garden. Butterfly
species that are indigenous to different areas are attracted to
different types of plants. In order to foster butterflies,
you’ll need to know the butterfly species that are found in
your area, and provide them with plants that are favored food
sources for adult butterflies as well as those plants that they
prefer for laying their eggs and nourishing larva.
There are, however, some standards that apply to all butterfly
gardens. Wherever you live and whatever butterflies you hope to
attract, you’ll attract more of them if you follow a few simple
basics:
Plant flowers in clumps and drifts.
Butterflies will flock to large expanses of flowers in similar
colors that bloom at the same time rather than to single plants
with just a few blooms. A carpet of violets, a sea of buttercups
or a wide open field full of Queen Anne’s Lace is sure to be
visited by dozens of butterflies.
Butterfly gardens need to provide both sun and shade.
Like all insects, butterflies are cold-blooded creatures. They
thrive on warm sun, and will bask on flat rocks or perch for
long minutes on the branches of a high bush in the sunlight. At
the same time, they need shade and shelter when the sun is too
hot, or on cool, cloudy days. An area that gets bright sun for
at least 4-6 hours per day is the best spot for a butterfly
garden, but don’t forget to include landscaping details that
offer shade.
Butterflies love puddles.
Add a sunken birdbath to your garden, or provide a cluster of
rocks that traps rain water to give butterflies a cool spot
where they can indulge their love of standing water.
Regional Butterfly Species and Plants
Different species of butterflies frequent different parts of
the country. You can find more information about which plants
are best for your area at a local nursery, or the agricultural
extension unit at a local university. For quick reference,
though, here’s a short list of butterflies and plants that they
love by region.
Northeastern N. America
>From W. Virginia up through Quebec and as far west as Indiana
and Ohio
Butterflies: Swallowtails (black, spicebush and tiger), Cabbage
White, Pearl Crescent, Monarch, Buckeye, Red-spotted Purple,
Great Spangled Fritillary
Plants: Milkweed (monarchs), fennel, parsley, carrot and dill
(black swallowtails), spicebush (spicebush swallowtails),
nasturtium (cabbage white), violets (great spangled
fritillary), willow, birch, beech, aspen, wild cherry (many
species)
Nectar Flowers: Buddleia, Heliotrope, Lantana, Milkweed, Mint,
Pentas, Porterweed, Verbena and Zinnias.
Southeastern U.S.
Butterflies: Swallowtails (black, spicebush, tiger and
pipevine), Buckeye, Pearl Crescent, Monarch, Cloudless Sulphur,
Gulf Fritillary, Red-spotted purple
Plants: Fennel, carrot, spicebush, dill, parsley, pipevine
(swallowtails), wild cherry, poplar, sassafras, passiflora,
wild senna, asters, milkweed
Nectar Flowers: same as northeast
Southern Florida
Butterflies: Polydamas swallowtail, giant swallowtail, zebra
longwing, Julia, gulf fritillary, orange-barred sulphur,
cloudless sulphur, monarch, queen
Plants: milkweed, wild senna, passiflora, wild lime, citrus,
dutchman’s pipe
Midwest
Butterflies: Swallowtails, Buckeye, Cloudless Sulphur, Pearl
Crescent, Cabbage White, Monarch, Viceroy
Plants: Pipevines, fennel, carrot, dill, parsley, violets,
nasturtium, wild senna, asters, snapdragon, verbena, cabbage,
milkweed
New Mexico, Texas
Butterflies: Patch, Hackberry, Monarch, Pearl Crescent,
Question Mark, Buckeye, Cloudless Sulphur, Gulf Fritillary
Plants: sunflowers, passiflora, hackberry, wild senna,
milkweed, nettles, asters
Arizona, California, Nevada
Butterflies: Western tiger swallowtail, anise swallowtail,
two-tailed swallowtail, black swallowtail, pale swallowtail,
pipevine swallowtail, cloudless sulphur, west coast lady,
Monarch, gulf fritillary
Plants: Fennel, carrots, parsley, dill, wild senna, wild plums,
buckthorns, wild cherries, wild lilacs, hollyhocks, ashes,
willows, aspens, poplars
Western States and Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta
Butterflies: Western tiger swallowtail, pale swallowtail,
cabbage white, striped hairstreak, Wiedemeyer’s Admiral,
mourning cloak, monarch, great spangled fritillary, painted
lady
Plants: wild plums and cherries, aspen, willow, poplar,
sunflowers, buckthorns, wild lilacs, nasturtium, blueberries,
ashes, violet, chokecherry.
About The Author: This article courtesy of
http://www.flowers-guide.net
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