Creating a butterfly garden

Attracting butterflies to your landscape is easy and entertaining! There are just a few things you need to know before you begin.

To attract butterflies and keep them coming back you need:

• A food source: nectar-producing plants to provide food for adult butterflies
• Water: a birdbath or even a small shallow basin with water for them to drink
• Host plants: a place where butterflies can lay their eggs and their caterpillars can feed

Here are a few plants that produce the nectar that butterflies love:

Butterfly bush
Privet
Sprea
Summersweet
Viburnum
Coneflower
Coreopsis
Sedum
Asclepias
Bee-Balm
Cosmos
Nasturtium
Zinnia

Host plants (remember to expect caterpillars to feed heavily on these!):

Willow
Dill, fennel, carrot
Snapdragons
Hollyhock
Baptisia
Sunflower

A well-planned landscape can give you all the ingredients to attract butterflies all season long. Consult your local Cooperative Extension office for more details on butterfly gardening!

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