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Planting a Butterfly Garden
Butterfly gardens can be grown throughout
the country. There is a wide variety of both butterfly
attracting (nectar) plants and host plants covering
all climate zones.
Butterfly gardens can range in size from a few
containers placed in a sunny spot to several acres.
Plant your garden in full sun. Plants,
especially flowering plants, need sun to make food
for themselves, and nectar for
butterflies. Butterflies also need sun to warm their
bodies for flight.
Plant butterfly-attracting flowers.
Butterflies are attracted to flowers with strong
scents and bright colors, where they drink sweet,
energy-rich nectar. Select plants that are native to
your area, and they will attract local
butterflies.
Include host plants in your garden.
Butterflies lay their eggs on host plants that
the emerging caterpillars will eat. The sight of a
butterfly emerging from a chrysalis will more than
make up for the chewed leaves.
Use colorful plants. Butterflies see more
colors than humans do. They seem to prefer red,
orange, yellow, purple, and dark pink. A large,
colorful garden is easy for butterflies to
find, and encourages them to stay longer.
Don't use chemical pesticides. Pesticides
kill butterflies, caterpillars, and other useful
insects.
Try
these methods instead:
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Plant marigolds, petunias, mint, and other herbs
that naturally repel pests.
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Encourage ladybugs and dragonflies to dine in
your garden.
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Wash pests away with insecticidal soap.
Nectar-producing plants will attract butterflies to
your garden. In order to support a full butterfly
lifecycle, host plants (for laying eggs and use as a
caterpillar food source) must also be present.
Throughout the country, the general requirements
for butterfly gardening are the same: full sun,
nectar source plants, larval host plants, a
pesticide-free environment, and knowledge of the
local butterfly fauna.
Many butterfly-attracting plants are natives and
require little attention, as they are naturally
adapted to the region in which they live.
Butterfly gardens are best planted in the spring
with younger plants or in the fall with mature
plants that will become dormant quickly and
re-emerge in the spring. It is best not to plant in
the heat of summer or the cold of winter.
One of the most common mistakes in butterfly
gardening is planting only one nectar source.
Because adult butterflies have a very short
lifespan, planting a variety of nectar sources will
encourage more butterflies to visit the garden.
Planting an adequate supply of host plants
gives butterflies a place to lay their eggs, which
will successfully hatch and result in butterflies
that will continue to visit the garden.
Butterflies typically lay their eggs in late spring
and hatch 3-6 days after they are laid. It takes 3-4
weeks for a caterpillar to pupate and 9-14 days to
emerge as an adult.
Good resources for learning more about butterfly
gardening include zoos, botanical gardens, butterfly
houses, garden centers and nurseries, libraries and the
internet. There are many good websites dedicated to
butterflies and butterfly gardening.
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