How to Attract Butterflies

Attract Butterflies to Your Yard

Your Landscape & You

Who doesn’t love to see butterflies flitting around their gardens? We are awed by their beauty, and charmed by the way they never seem to go in a straight line between two destinations. It is natural that people want to buy plants that attract butterflies to their gardens. I just wish they woundn’t plant Butterfly Bushes (Buddleia davidii).

Yes, butterflies are attracted to Buddleia to feed on nectar. The problem is that Buddleia is an exotic invasive plant. Exotic means it is a plant that evolved someplace else. According to Michael Dirr the countries unquestioned authority on landscape trees and shrubs, both Buddleia davidii and Buddleia alternifolia are native to China. The real problem is that Butterfly Bush is invasive. That means it doesn’t just stay in your yard. It produces seed, and those seeds travel. They can be wind blown or carried by birds or other animals to other locations. At the LeHigh Gap Nature Center they have volunteer work days to remove it from their preserve. When an exotic invasive plant invades our local ecosystem it takes the place of a native plant. As more and more exotic invasive plants replace native plants in our yards and in our preserved natural areas, the habitat is compromised. Our indigenous butterflies and other wildlife decline in population. Many birds and other wildlife are even going extinct.

Host Plants for Butterflies

It helps to know about the life cycle of butterflies. I’ll use the example of the Monarch butterfly to illustrate exactly how this works. A Monarch butterfly lays her eggs on milkweed (Asclepias). The Monarch caterpillar developes from the egg, and munches on the Asclepias. The milkweed is called the larval food or the host plant by scientists. The caterpillar then creates a covering around itself, called the pupal case. Then the magic happens. A butterfly emerges from the case. The butterfly then feeds on nectar from flowers. They are able to get nectar from many different types of flowers, but it has to have milkweed to lay its eggs on, it is the only thing the caterpillar can eat. No milkweed, no Monarchs. I would like to recommend some substitutions for Butterfly Bush.

Common NameLatin namedescriptionheight
Redosier Dogwood Redosier Dogwood White flowers, White fruit, Red Winter stems 7-9′
SpicebushLindera benzoinYellow flowers in early Spring, Red fruit on female plants, Yellow Fall leaf color 6-12′
Flame Azalea Rhododendron calendulaceumTraffic stopping orange flowers in May and June, Deciduous, Good Fall color4-8′
Highbush BlueberryVaccinium corymbosum White flowers, Blueberries, Brilliant Fall leaf color6-12′
Arrowwood ViburnumViburnum dentatum White flowers, Blue fruit6-15′
Mapleleaf ViburnumViburnum acerifoliumWhite flowers, Black fruit, Glowing Pink/Red/Purple Fall leaf color2-6′

Favorite Perennials for Butterflies

Common NameLatin nameDescriptionHeight
Swamp MilkweedRedosier Dogwood White flowers, White fruit, Red Winter stems 7-9′
New York Ironweed Lindera benzoinYellow flowers in early Spring, Red fruit on female plants, Yellow Fall leaf color 6-12′
Wild BergamotRhododendron calendulaceumTraffic stopping orange flowers in May and June, Deciduous, Good Fall color4-8′
Summer PhloxVaccinium corymbosum White flowers, Blueberries, Brilliant Fall leaf color6-12′
SneezeweedViburnum dentatum White flowers, Blue fruit6-15′
New England AsterViburnum acerifoliumWhite flowers, Black fruit, Glowing Pink/Red/Purple Fall leaf color2-6′
Joe-Pye WeedEupatorium fistulosumMauve flowers, Nector3-8′
White TurtleheadChelone glabraWhite flowers, Nector & Host3′