Hi, butterfly fanciers,
Just thought I'd share this rather sophisticated essay on planting for butterflies...It made me think about how I approach my plantings...
"The Truth About Butterfly Gardening"
Part One: http://fnpsblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/truth-about-butterfly-gardening-part.html
Part Two: http://fnpsblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/truth-about-butterfly-gardening-part_12.html
I thought this fellow had some interesting and provacative things to say about the recent fascination with suburban butterfly gardening....I'm not sure what to think about it, but it certainly gives an interesting perspective on the value of planting natives...
t.
Florida Native Plant Society article about Butterfly Gardens
Right on target. As I always tell people when I teach a class on butterfly gardening -- there's a 176 species of butterflies that have been recorded in Dallas Co., Texas. Okay, you've planted your dill/fennel/parsley, your milkweed, and your passionvine -- that covers eight species. What about the other 168?
Dale Clark
Dallas County Lepidopterists' Society
www.dallasbutterflies.com
Hi T,Thanks for sharing. How have you been? I have to agree with him in a way however I understand why people want to attract the larger butterflies, because that's my first priority. I tried to research lots of plants that are recommended for butterflies and choose the ones that are native to my area when possible, but I am into butterfly gardening because I want a beautiful yard as well. So sometimes I plant things that are for both of us and usually those are the non natives. There are no where near as many choices when trying to stick to native to your actual county. Plus the reason lots of butterflies are being seen long distances from their original areas is due to people planting their hosts so it can't be a completely negative thing. I enjoy all the additional species that having large butterfly geared gardens brings. Lately I've been noticing very small black butterflies in the yard every day. Also, all the different insects and even spiders are even interesting to me. (I'm not scared of spiders, if I find them in the house I pick the up and put them outside instead of killing them). It's a lot of work trying to find True native plants too. I feel like everytime I order a so called native plant from a nursery it looks just like the popular cultivars you see out there, which leads me to believe lots of nurseries are just trying to get another type of customer by calling their plants 'natives' when they should call them nearly natives. I also feel like lots of seed companies send you the same old species and label them as different. I feel this has happened to me with seeds that were supposed to be Amsonia illustris, now that I have them blooming along with some I recieved as Amsonia tabernmontana, they look exactly the same. I have many more examples but don't want to bore anyone too much. lol
I have to say that the local chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society always has a lot of great host plants for sale at the USF plant festivals. I've bought quite a few of my plants from them. But, a lot of these plants can be hard to find. I will confess that I've pilfered seeds from some of the local preserves because I can't purchase the plants anywhere (our native pawpaws, for example). People go for the same old host plants because they're what's available. Like he says in the article, the native milkweeds don't last long and I've never been able to find them in the first place.
I've also said on this board before that it's best if you can leave a little section of your yard "weedy". The spanish needles mentioned in the article are one of the best butterfly attractors I've ever had. They are very invasive themselves, though. I'm lucky to have a neighbor behind me with 9 acres, most of which he leaves pretty natural and only mows every so often. He has a lot of native plants like pellitory for the Red Admirals, but also invasives like Camphor Tree which host the Spicebush Swallowtail. I'd love to pull out the camphors and plant native bay trees but it would take a lot of manpower and time. Oh, and it's not my property! (Not that I let that fact keep me from hunting caterpillars on his land. He's a cool guy, though.) I also live on the corner and let the area down by the road get a little weedy sometimes. It really does help bring in the skippers, duskywings, and other smaller butterflies.
Melanie
I have a huge pile of old branches from 35 trees we cut down here, I'm talking 100 foot pines, so the pile is rather large. The only weeds that have come up in there don't seem to be attracting anything except some japanese beetles. I've IDd some of the weeds but of course there aren't any of the ones I'd hope would pop up. I also throw all my excess seed heads and sometimes plants out there so there are some flowers I planted around the edge. I see a lot of different small butterflies so they must be attracted to something in there..
My neighbors' weedy yards totally help out the butterflies. Frogfruit is a common weed down here and it hosts the Phaeon Crescent and the White Peacock. Of course, that nice St. Augustine grass like in my yard hosts a lot of skippers, like the article says. Let's just say I'm the last person you'd want on the Homeowner's Association board. If anyone complained about weeds, I'd be like, "But the butterflies love it!". I'd probably try to pass lots of rules about using native plants, too.
Melanie
Lol :) That's funny.
All the plants you are talking about aren't things I could grow around here. I wish there were some one as knowledgeable as you are, about the butterflies and natives in my area. For me I just have to research which hosts the butterflies native here use, then search the usda map to find out if they are native here. Lots of times they are naturalized not native..
I use the USDA maps, too! Plus, I walk around the preserves and just see what's growing and what butterflies are attracted to, what the caterpillars are eating. People always underestimate the power of simple observation when it comes to science, but I've learned so much just by watching caterpillars and butterflies. I also have the benefit of a much longer season than you Northerners!
Hi, meredith and mellie, and lep farmer! Good to see you posting! I was on a DG hiatus for while, busy with home things, but recently tapped in again. (Meredith, last week I checked out your 'profile' to see if and or where you've been posting. Always am interested in what you are up to!)
Well, I thought the Florida native plants guy was rather provacative and 'dissed' we suburban butterfly enthusiasts a little bit (or was I imagining that?!). Of course, what he had to say was meaningful and interesting.
Last summer someone brought up wildlife "sinks" where distinct 'islands of habitat' of, say, certain butterflies thrive for a while and then disappear because they are stranded on the isolated area with no way to 'meet up' with others of their species to keep the gene pool strong...anyway, my kids (who study way too much science) accuse me of creating a 'sink' here, and that I should lay off planting so many host plants!
Oh, well. You can't win either way, can you?!
I do have a weedy area (with designer weeds in it especially for the butterflies I'd like to have around) but I think this particular 'garden' is getting on my neighbors nerves. And I've been trying out some (so-called) native plants but as Meredith says people might do, I stretch the definition of 'native' if I have a particular desire for a plant.
Meredith, I'd like to jump in your pool today. It's ninty-six degrees and humid. But, when did you say your husband was coming down this way (with his pool fixins)?!
Good luck butterfly-ing to all. t.
Lol Not sure when he can make it out that way, I'll have to check his schedule. :) It's funny you said you you were on hiatus from DG, I was as well. I thought it was funny we both started posting around the same time. :) I had told myself I wasn't allowed to go online or start seeds until I got my house organized, so here I still am with no seedlings and a messy house... So, So much for that. lol I felt the same way like he was giving suburbia a diss on the butterfly gardening. I think any interest may develop into a deeper involvement, perhaps with natives. But peoples interests need to be peeked somewhere. If you show a rose lover a bunch of weeds and say this is what you have to grow to be a butterfly gardener, they may get turned off and never bother with it again. However if they start with a few fancy looking plants and have that first joyful moment of seeing the big beautiful butterfly enjoying it maybe it could lead to them adding more variety and in the end not minding the weeds. Right!? You are right that it is informative anyhow. I always like to read butterfly articles, now I know what to plant when my retirement dream comes true and I move to Florida. lol Don't let the neighbor bother you! I think the women that lives next door likes my big garden, but I have a feeling her husband is dieing to ride over it with his ride on lawnmower! Plus I've seen pics of some of your gardens and they always look fabulous!
Ha, Ha! Good review of his article!
When I looked you up I noticed you hadn't posted in a while and I was concerned you had become extinct on Dave's! So glad you have resurfaced.
If you move to FLA, let me know where and maybe we can buy on the same block. But you have to promise to design a pool for us! I am dying for a dip! (but we can't put a pool in without moving our septic system all around....darn!)
Okay I promise! :) Sounds good. That's too bad about the septic!
May I join in this conversation?
I found the 2 part article on the Truth About Butterfly Gardening fascinating.
I went back and reread the article quite a few times.
Thanks tabasco, it really made me think about why, how and for who I was gardening.
I certainly want a beautiful, well designed garden full of wonderful plants that have fragrance and eye appeal.
But I also want to help improve the environment and give back a little.
I know this year I did minimal cleanup in the spring.
I left most of the natural leaf mulch alone and cut back fewer plants and I have an explosion of the smaller butterflies, the really tiny fast flying ones I can't even name yet.
I also added many more native plants and found if you place them well and experiment and move things when it doesn't look right, they are as beautiful and interesting as the exotics or showier cultivars.
I plant a lot of host plants on the chance the butterfly might come to my yard. Some I wish I hadn't later, but usually don't take anything out completely after it gets going, just eliminate the excess. So many of my plants have been from other DGers at swaps. I have even been gifted caterpillars to get me started! LOL! Then have taken in Gulf Frits when I had a bunch of the evergreen passi and friends are being eaten down to the ground. I wish someone had a lot of buckeyes in my area!
I also have this theory about picking the weeds you want. I've dug up Spiderwort (Trandescantia spp.) and Twinflower (looks like little spreading petunias) out of my neighbors' yards. I pulled a bunch of those Spanish Needles to get the Twinflowers to spread and it's working. I always say, you're going to have weeds, but pick the ones you want. I'm also a believer in using cultivated forms of native flowers, like Blanket Flowers (Gaillardia...I'm spelling that wrong). Anyway, I like the "Goblin" variety but I still think of it as a native plant. Going with a cultivar can help avoid that "weedy" look that annoys neighbors. Sometimes a little compromise is necessary.
But really, the best thing you can do is encourage your local government to preserve natural areas. Florida has several funds (like Florida Forever) and in my county we pay a tax called ELAPP that is solely to purchase and preserve areas that are environmentally sensitive. Even in these hard times, we voted to keep it for another few decades or so. I think the average homeowner pays something like $8 per year. These are the places I go hiking and see the butterflies that don't tend to visit my garden (Zebra Swallowtail city!). Plus, the preserves are throughout the county and represent many types of habitats - including those that host the endangered Florida Goldenaster and the Florida Scrub Jay. And if you live near an area like that, I think you should pay extra importance to going native, but that's generally not hard since they tend to be slightly more rural areas where you can let things go a little more.
More of my two cents,
Melanie
I wish we had that around here! I wouldn't mind paying to keep some natural habitats. It seems like every year they are clearing out another field that has tons of plants for butterflies. One area was full of milkweedsand now it's a shopping plaza! With a huge paved parking lot.