Jun 22 2010
Butterfly Gardening 101
Butterfly gardening is an excellent way to connect with nature, having butterflies around can add such beauty and wonder to your yard or garden. They are always welcome visitors during the summer months, and they are very easy to attract. Simply plant some nectar producing flowers and the butterflies will come.
It seems that new commercial and housing developments are springing up everywhere, and with them we are losing many of the natural meadows that have supplied butterflies with their food for generations. When theses natural meadows disappear, the number of butterflies you see around will begin to dwindle too. Luckily butterflies can be easily lured back if you plant a special garden where the butterfly’s caterpillar has plants to eat and the butterflies have a lot of flowers to sip nectar from. Butterfly gardens are easy to plant and will give you and your family a chance to see butterflies in their natural habitat.
All you need to begin a butterfly garden is an open space with lots of sunshine and shelter from the wind. Pick a site with lots of sunlight, and place a few large flat rocks or stones around that will capture and hold the heat so that the butterflies can bask in the afternoon sun. Try to place your garden near hedges or shrubs that will help protect them from any strong winds. If it is too windy, the butterflies can’t stay around for long, their delicate wings can be destroyed by being buffeted about by the wind. The protective hedge or shrub that you use could perhaps be a host plant for the caterpillar.
You can find out the different caterpillar host plants from several sources, like your local nursery or garden center. The internet is also an excellent source of information, and eventually you may want to invest in a good butterfly guide, it will greatly increase your enjoyment of the butterflies if you can learn to identify the different butterflies in your garden.
Butterflies also love mud puddles where they can drink the water and get the minerals they need. A patch of damp soil will make them happy. One of the most important things to remember is that the garden must be kept pesticide free. Many people like to use pesticides to chase away unwanted pests, unfortunately it will chase away your butterflies too. Put your butterfly garden in a corner where there will be no chemical pesticides used. Better still, learn to practice organic gardening techniques
Flowers with plenty of nectar are a “must have” for any butterfly garden. When planting these nectar sources try to put in plants that will provide flowers all through the summer and fall since they are the only source of food for the butterflies. Don’t forget to use shrubs and wildflowers in your garden. Butterfly Bushes and Lilacs make good shrubs for the butterfly garden. Asters, Joe Pye Weed, and daisies are excellent wildflower choices.
Flowers such as Roses, geraniums and lilies will produce very small amounts of nectar so plant them in another part of your yard. Keep your butterfly garden varied to attract the largest number of butterflies. Another important part of the garden is to supply a source for larval food. The caterpillars will need plenty of food to grow into a butterfly. If there is not any food supply available the butterflies will go somewhere else to lay their eggs. Some butterflies use herbs plants to lay their eggs on. The Black Swallowtail likes dill, fennel, and parsley for their caterpillars to eat.
If you are short on space you could also plant a butterfly garden in containers. Buy some pretty pots and plant them with annual flowers that do not require a lot of space and only last a year.Marigolds, Lantana, Creeping Verbena, and the shorter variety of Zinnia will do the trick. A Butterfly bush is a great choice for butterflies, but it would take a very large pot to grow in.
Some people would rather make a butterfly feeder using a sugar solution. This is easy to do, just put 4 parts water to 1 part sugar in a pot and boil it until the sugar dissolves. Let it cool. Get a shallow dish, soak a sponge with the solution and place it the dish. Put a few stone in or around the dish so that the butterflies will have a place to perch while they are feeding.
Children are naturally curious about insects and butterflies, butterfly gardens are a great way to teach them about nature. Have them keep a journal to keep track of the different kinds of butterflies that visit your butterfly garden. Let them research the butterflies on the computer to learn about each particular butterfly and that way it becomes not only fun, but a learning experience also.
Since there are so many different growing zones in the United States, you will want to talk with someone at your local gardening center for suggestions on which butterfly plants to use for the butterfly garden in your particular zone.
Butterflies can always be attracted to your yard or garden; it is just a matter of planting flowers that produce abundant amounts of nectar. You also will need to give them an open area sheltered from strong winds, so that they can fly around and feed on your flowers. Butterflies are not very hard to please, they only ask for food and shelter.
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