Incredible Butterfly
Learn About The Incredible Butterfly
Planting A Butterfly Garden
Creating a butterfly garden is a wonderful way to get these beautiful creatures into your yard. Butterflies love certain types of flowers and there were a few things you can do to create a habitat that all of the local butterflies will love to call home.
The first thing you want to do is to plant nectar producing plants that butterflies love. Of course, you'll need to know a little bit about the butterflies that live in your region and the plants that are native to it. Here in the Northeast, we have a butterfly bush in our yard that attracts dozens of different kinds of butterflies. Some other plants that butterflies love include Rose of Sharon, Cosmos, impatiens, sunflower, marigolds, Queen Anns lace, Verbena, Cone flowers, milkweed, thistle, bee balm, goldenrod, passionflower, butterfly weed, black-eyed Susan, and aster to name a few.
One thing you want to be careful about in your butterfly garden is to never use any pesticides of any kind as these could harm the butterflies. You'll want to plan the garden carefully because a lot of the plants that butterflies are attracted to can be a bit wild looking. It's best to choose the plants you want and then plan out the garden so you know where to place each one for the most aesthetically pleasing design. Choose a spot that has full sun for most of the day and put the taller more weedy plants in the back.
Another thing you can do to attract butterflies is provide them with a butterfly House. These structures are similar to a birdhouse, however they have narrow slots at the butterflies can fit right in at birds cannot. Butterflies might seek shelter in here during the cool nights.
You can also hang a butterfly feeder which is very similar to a birdfeeder, and you can buy commercially prepared nectar that butterflies love. Be sure to get one that also has a place to put fruit on because butterflies also love fruit!
Another thing to think about when attracting butterflies to your garden is to plant some host plants that the female butterfly can lay her eggs on. These are plants that provide a food source for the caterpillars hatching out of the egg. These may not be the same as the nectar plants but you'll probably want to plant some close by. However, be forewarned that once those caterpillars hatch, you may see some serious munching on your plants but don't be alarmed, this is what you planted them in the first place!
Some butterfly host plants include fennel, dill,, snapdragons, alfalfa, sunflowers, milkweed, nettle, Cottonwood and wild licorice to name but a few. Actually, each different type of butterfly has a certain host plant that it prefers so if you are trying to attract a certain species, then you want to be sure to plant the host plants that it likes.
Planting a butterfly garden can be a great way to have a garden that isn't simply about the plants. While gardens, in themselves, are wonderful, imagine how much more enticing your garden will be with beautiful butterflies floating around it.
The first thing you want to do is to plant nectar producing plants that butterflies love. Of course, you'll need to know a little bit about the butterflies that live in your region and the plants that are native to it. Here in the Northeast, we have a butterfly bush in our yard that attracts dozens of different kinds of butterflies. Some other plants that butterflies love include Rose of Sharon, Cosmos, impatiens, sunflower, marigolds, Queen Anns lace, Verbena, Cone flowers, milkweed, thistle, bee balm, goldenrod, passionflower, butterfly weed, black-eyed Susan, and aster to name a few.
One thing you want to be careful about in your butterfly garden is to never use any pesticides of any kind as these could harm the butterflies. You'll want to plan the garden carefully because a lot of the plants that butterflies are attracted to can be a bit wild looking. It's best to choose the plants you want and then plan out the garden so you know where to place each one for the most aesthetically pleasing design. Choose a spot that has full sun for most of the day and put the taller more weedy plants in the back.
Another thing you can do to attract butterflies is provide them with a butterfly House. These structures are similar to a birdhouse, however they have narrow slots at the butterflies can fit right in at birds cannot. Butterflies might seek shelter in here during the cool nights.
You can also hang a butterfly feeder which is very similar to a birdfeeder, and you can buy commercially prepared nectar that butterflies love. Be sure to get one that also has a place to put fruit on because butterflies also love fruit!
Another thing to think about when attracting butterflies to your garden is to plant some host plants that the female butterfly can lay her eggs on. These are plants that provide a food source for the caterpillars hatching out of the egg. These may not be the same as the nectar plants but you'll probably want to plant some close by. However, be forewarned that once those caterpillars hatch, you may see some serious munching on your plants but don't be alarmed, this is what you planted them in the first place!
Some butterfly host plants include fennel, dill,, snapdragons, alfalfa, sunflowers, milkweed, nettle, Cottonwood and wild licorice to name but a few. Actually, each different type of butterfly has a certain host plant that it prefers so if you are trying to attract a certain species, then you want to be sure to plant the host plants that it likes.
Planting a butterfly garden can be a great way to have a garden that isn't simply about the plants. While gardens, in themselves, are wonderful, imagine how much more enticing your garden will be with beautiful butterflies floating around it.