One of nature’s most beautiful creations is the colorful butterfly. They are a delightful addition to any garden. Below are some tips on how to attract butterflies to your yard.
Butterflies make a yard attractive but remember they may lay eggs on your plants. When the larvae hatch they will be hungry.
Plant a variety of flowers in your garden. Different butterflies like different colored flowers. Some like red, yellow, and orange while others like purple, white, and blue.
Establish garden spots in the sunny parts of your yard. Butterflies love sunshine and will only eat in sunny areas.
Plant as many native wildflowers as possible. Butterflies evolved to eat the nectar of these plants, so they are more attracted to them. A good way to get a good variety of wildflowers is to plant one of the commercially available wildflower mixes.
Sow a variety of flowers in clumps. Butterflies are attracted to a mix of colors. Planting different flowers in the same plot will entice different kinds of butterflies to your garden. Good flowers to plant include butterfly weed, zinnias, coneflowers, hollyhocks, milkweed, daisies, butterfly weed, bee balm, sunflowers, and many others. Try many different flowers to see what works best in your yard.
Select at least some plants that bloom for a long period of time. Plants that bloom throughout the season ensure that you will continue to attract butterflies to your yard for many months. You can also plant flowers that bloom at different times of the year, or you can make several flower plantings during the spring and summer.
Try to plant single blossom flowers so that butterflies can reach the nectar easily. The newer double bloom flowers are pretty, but butterflies have a hard time reaching the nectar of these blooms. Bigger is not necessarily better when selecting flowers to attract butterflies to your yard.
Establish some trees and plants to nurture caterpillars. Butterflies are attracted to yards with trees, shrubs, and other plants that can feed their young when their eggs hatch. Some good plants for caterpillars are dogwoods, clover, milkweed, hackberry, willow, wild cherry, locust, poplar, wild plum, sunflower, and thistle.
Plant windbreaks along the edge of you yard. Butterflies hate wind, so the air in your yard must be calm to attract butterflies. Breezy yards just do not attract many butterflies no matter how attractive the flower garden is. Some of the trees and shrubs that caterpillars feed on also make excellent windbreaks, so you can achieve two objectives by planting them.
Provide water sources to attract butterflies to your yard. Butterflies love muddy water. So wet down the soil near your flowers so that the butterflies have a place to drink. Butterflies like dirty water because they get minerals from the soil.
Place some water dishes in your garden. If the mud dries up, the butterflies will be attracted to the water. Bury some shallow pans in your garden and fill them with water and sand. Even moist sand will do. It’s also a good idea to add a small pinch of salt to some of the water since butterflies need salt. Often, a number of butterflies visit water dishes at the same time, creating the chance for a group photo.
Put several flat stones in your garden. The stones make good, warm resting spots for butterflies. They can spread their wings and warm them while sitting on the stones. Butterflies like to warm their wings before taking flight. Be sure to place some of the stones near your water pans as they make good perches for the butterflies.
Scatter some fruit in your garden for a butterfly feast. Butterflies love fruit almost as much as they love flowers. If possible, select fruit that is overripe or even beginning to rot. Fruit often attracts many butterflies at the same time. Butterfly favorites are bananas, cantaloupes, and watermelon.
Don’t use insecticides in your garden. Insecticides will kill most butterfly varieties and their caterpillars. Butterfly caterpillars are rarely as destructive as moth caterpillars, so most gardeners find them easy to tolerate. If they do cause too much leaf damage, try removing the caterpillars by hand. You can put them on other plants instead. Remember, today’s caterpillar is tomorrow’s butterfly.
