A couple of weeks ago, I put in a new herb garden. I'm so pleased. Then I decided to add on and double the size. I finally decided to make that end (10x10) a butterfly garden. I just planted and watered the seeds in a few minutes ago. I'm so excited. Can't wait for them to come up! Anyone ever try to attract butterflies before? Did you get alot of varieties? Tell me your stories about what I have to look forward to!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Answers

Denise... the butterflies are going to be your best friend now!!!

Could you share some of the flowers, perennials and etc. that you planted???

thanks

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

I planted a butterfly mix which included Bird's Eye, Black-Eyed Susan, Catchfly, Coreopsis, Rocket Larkspur, Perennial Flax, Purple Coneflower, Scarlet Flax, Sweet William, and Northern Lights Toadflax. It also contains Bachelor's Buttons, Wallflower, and Shasta Daisies. That's quite a few. Surely some of them will come up! The picture on the packets look very colorful and pretty. Can't wait!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Did you put in a sipping pond? Apparently the males like to have a place to drink. A mudhole really. I don't have the book with that info handy. Julie, if you have your copy of Theme Gardens (Barbara Damrosch) nearby, I think that's the one that tells what bflies need for their puddle. Or, I suppose looking at bfly sites on the 'Net might divulge the information.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Strange how things work out...all my garden books are on the wall right behind the computer! And even more amazing, I found the book I was looking for almost immediately.

What Joy was referring to about the drinking pond, was to create an area deliberately with poor drainage for the butterflies to come and drink from, shallow, like a puddle rather thana pond, and that you can encourage them with large flat stones in and next to it, and to smear them with beer or sugar water from time to time. You let it fill with rainwater, and add water from the house if it gets too dry, however, they did note that it may not attract as many as a nice puddle of barnyard muck!! So you have another attractant source you may not even be aware of. It would be interesting to put some nice mucky stuff into a shallow saucer and keep it puddly and see if they like it. (and if not, dump it onto one of the shrubs and at least the bush will like it!_

I'm very interested in that 'Northern Lights' Toadflax...we have one that is called Bastard Toadflax around here (aka Butter and Eggs, although I have heard several other plants called that) that looks like little bi-colour yellow snapdragons. I tried some other plants that looked the same, but in lovely pinks, and other colours, and they died. :-( Maybe I'm too far north. Strangely, the snapdragons reseed themselves.

Other recommended butterfly plants are Marigold (Tagetes), Milkweed (Asclepias),Parsley, Passion Flower, Pearly Everlasting, Queen Anne's Lace, Senna, Black Snakeroot,Spicefush, Turtlehead,Violets, Willow, Wisteria, Mallows,Lupine, Indian Paintbrush, Hops,, Hollyhocks, Dogwood,White Clover, Blueberry, Borage, Cherry, and Corn!

From my own experience, I will add that they also like Oregano, Yarrow, asters, coreopsis, and chives. Oh, and lilacs! We used to have wonderful Viceroy butterflies around them when they'd bloom, occasionally a Monarch. And one of my favourites, the Syrphid Moth, the one called the Humming Bird Moth. They look like a tiny tiny hummingbird and hover the same way (as all the syrphid moths do). They've very shy though.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Don't forget Monarda. The "hummingbird moths" just love it, as well as many others.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

You'll love your new butterfly garden. That is the first thing I planted when I bought my house in '95. Since then I have moved the butterfly attracting plants to the edges and plant my veggies in the rest of the space. I recommend "butterfly bush" which is "buddlea" a perennial. I have one of these at each of the four corners of the garden. They get about 8 feet tall in summer. (You must cut them back in early spring each year because they only blossom on the new growth.) My absolute favorite thing to do on Saturday mornings is take my coffee out to the garden and sit and watch the butterflies. There are usually at least a half dozen different kinds. They entertain the cats as well.

Don't forget to plant things for the butterflies to lay their eggs on. For example swallowtails just love dill. I have several plants just for them. There are always tons of striped worms on the dill by summers end. The next year they will be swallowtails!

Also, The butterflies will help pollinate your veggies if they are close enough to the plants they like.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Denise, I've heard that you can put up a "butterfly house", also. Don't know what it looks like (maybe somebody else does??) But from what I've read, if they have a place to shelter, they will lay eggs nearby. Therefore....MORE butterflies!!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Unfortunately, from the reports I've heard, the butterfly houses don't work. :-( I can't remember who it was, an entomologist or something, and they'd looked into it kind of extensively, hoping that there would be a benefit to them, but he said not to waste your money on them. Darn. On the other hand, if you have time on your hands, they look super easy to make, if you want to conduct your own experiments!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Bummer! Thanks for saving me some money, Julie!!

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

The other day I was at the nursery (TRYing to behave, with mixed results) and ended up carting home a double-flowering plum. It's a very pretty plant, with pale pink button-like flowers that spring bloom, and I thought I'd put it in where a rose didn't make it, and as I went outside to do some planting, I found that it was already covered in lots of little bees, hover flies, and two different kinds of butterflies!!! I'm not very expert on lepidoptera, one was a tiny sort of cornflower blue, the other looked like it was a checkered something-or-t'other whatchamacallum. But apparently that's something that they like early in spring too.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

I appreciate all the good advice! I have the butterfly garden attached and at the end of my herb garden. I hope that will be a sufficient place for them to lay in. I have yarrow, mugwort, lemon balm, mint, sage, catnip, lavendar, and bee balm. I'm not quite sure what I'll do for their sipping yet. I wonder if a small birdbath would work? I'm so looking forward to the flowers coming up. I'm just sure it's going to be beautiful!

-- Anonymous, May 10, 2001