RJ - good idea. Here are a few that worked for me this year:
Verbena ''River Mix''
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/165508/
This was visited by:
Snowberry Clearwing (Hemaris diffinis) - http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/900/
Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) - http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/9/
Clouded Skipper (Lerema accius) - http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/1476/
Statice - Limonium sinuatum
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/753/
Little Yellow (Eurema lisa) - http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/410/
Of course - many more, but I'll save room for others for now. :^)
sigh - raining and cold - no more butterflies for a while.
Time to tell us your Top Three Nectar Plants of the Season!
Well, you could have knocked me over with a feather--I never knew that toads molted! Makes sense that they would, though. Lizards, snakes and other critters do, so why not toads? Love that name--Frazier! send us a pic of him! LOL Oh, but wait! Don't toads eat butterflies? Horrors!
edited to say: Sorry! Guess I'm off the subject!
This message was edited Oct 24, 2007 6:09 PM
I doubt that toads eat butterflies..mabe the cats if they can find them up in the trees..being nocturnal, more mosquitos and other nocturnal bugs. I didn't think about toads molting either until I saw poor Fraizer just peeling tons of skin off his face.
I don't have a pict of Fraizer though..he might have gone hybernating now since it was chillin last night...nippy nippy cold ..I think it was 48 this morning...can't wait till winter is over...even though it hasn't started
OK, Great. I'm drying more Ironweed seed if anyone wants some. I've had 4 takers.
Anybody else wants some just e-mail me your address. Happy to oblige. t.
I had already posted this on the Texas forum, but I'll also put it here to show that Lion's Ear attracts butterflies quite a bit when it's blooming. These came up from scattered seed and some got up to 7 feet...guess all that summer rain made them go crazy. A few bent over in the winds, but the butterflies still find them.
The ironweeds are great, too. I've got Western Ironweed and Woolly Ironweed and when blooming they do attract the butterflies.
The 3 plants that had the highest flying insect appeal in my garden were:
Purplecone Flower
New England Aster
Flowering Tobacco (for Hummingbird Moths).
Red Texas sage (salvia)
Zennia
Turk's Cap
native willows
west texas mistflower
Red River Valley border southern Oklahoma and north central Texas
Jackie,
I think it is interesting that you listed red texas sage (salvia) on your list. I have/had plenty of it in my garden, but I didn't see any butterflies on it. Of course, it may have been that even though they like the salvia, there were other plants that they liked more.
Interesting about the Lion's Ear (Leonotis leonurus)
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1048/
I see that someone mentioned on Plant Files that the birds love Lion's Ear too. Although it is too cold sensitive for the north, Lion's Ear looks like it can be grown in pots and wintered over here. It surely looks like a pretty plant!
It's weird about the salvias. Some that are so popular in the south strike out for nectar up here. I don't know why, exactly...perhaps other flowers of greater appeal are available, or some say that the specific butterflies that nectar on, say, the TX salvia, have not yet arrived here when it comes into bloom. Or something like that. Does that make any sense?! LOL
I had a Painted Lady butterfly on my purple sage today. I didn't know what kind of butterfly it was so I asked over on the ID forum and debnes identified it for me. I posted a photo of it over there but I'll post it here, too, so y'all can see it for yourself.
Note on Leonotis leonurus - My Lion' Ear has had only moderate appeal to butterflies, however, it's flying insect appeal at night has been good. In the accompanying photo there are at least 5 small moths pictured. Photo was 3 nights ago.
This year I've had 2 different varieties of Lion's Ear. Leonotis leonurus was purchased as a very small plant from Logee's. I think it's classified as a tender perennial. It's growth rate was nothing short of spectacular as it spread to appx 4.5 ft across and 3.5 ft tall. It was one of the last plants to flower in my garden. The other Leonotis is Leonotis nepetifolia var. nepetifolia 'Staircase' and is considered a half hardy annual that is a persistent self-seeder. It normally reaches to a height approaching 10 feet and lacks the bushiness associated with the former. The latter, tall leonotis has been a fairly good hummingbird attractant
Daytime pic of Leonotis leonurus (9 days ago).
I forgot to mention the hummingbirds. The plants bloomed late because of the summer rains, but they were using it for quite a while before they started moving south. The ZLWs visit it especially often these days.
I have the taller variety and the moths and bees loved it. It's such a cool looking plant and grows amazingly fast! Awesome pics of the butterflies and moths nectaring from it! Thanks for sharing those photos, Linda and Jack! :-)
Here goes, from Chiefland, Florida (North-Central Florida) - top three of my butterfly/hummingbird garden flowers are:
Yellow Lantana - Butterflies & Skippers
Bottlebrush Tree - Butterflies & Hummingbirds
Mexican Petunia - Butterflies & Hummingbirds
Eirlys
Sounds great. We've compiled quite a list!
Don't forget to save some seeds for swapping and sharing!
It seems like gardeners all over DG (and all over the country) are really getting into butterfly gardening--I noticed a lot of interest over in the Wintersowing forum and the Cottage Gardening forum too.
It's fun to watch butterfly gardening interest grow...
My three best nectar plants depend on the season but at this time of year they are Agastaches(Hummingbird Mint), Hyssop (hyssopus oficinalis...sp?), and zinnias or other brightly colored annual.
HAVE A GOOD DAY!!
Thanks,
Chuck
Chuck--good to hear you are getting some action in your garden! Are you getting butterflies at your agastaches too (besides the Hummingbirds?).
Also, lep lovers, I think there is still time to get in on the butterfly seed swap that Beckygardener is organizing...only 10 packets of seed needed to get in on it--up to five packets of the same seed, so you only need to ID two different plants with seed ready. Or look in your seed box!
Details for the swap are in this forum on the Swap thread....Lots of fun and inexpensive way to add to your butterfly garden!....
Thanks, T for the announcement about the seed swap! For those who haven't seen the thread for it yet:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/784913/
Come join us! There is still time! ~Becky~
My top three butterfly nectar plants are:
Verbain- the butterflies can't get enough of it
Zinnias- their second favorite
Passion Vine
Tabasco,
I had problems with the selection parameters. There are favorites in the Spring, Summer and Fall. Plus, there are separate favorites between the small BF's and the large ones.
Trying to play by the rules:
Duranta - AKA Golden Dew Drops, great for as long as it maintains blossoms. A real butterfly magnet - all sizes and types.
Mine is about 15'+ tall and full in size - say, 8 - 10' across.
Country Girl Chrysanthamums - mostly attract the mid-sized to small.
Phlox - Long bloom period and a real magnet. All sizes and types.
Now, for yellows and sulphurs you have to have a Senna
bush. Mostly a larval food source but who's quibbling. I just like to see the yard full of yellow and gold to orange butterflies, which this provides for many months. Mine has attracted the Orange-barred Sulphurs, which are mostly found in Florida. They started coming here to my side of Houston about 3 years ago and are now resident.
Have two chrysalises in the house at this time. Should emerge early next week.
Attached is a male Orange-barred getting ready to leave.
Forgot to include that we are, I believe, in Zone 9a. Seldom freezes and even more seldom a hard freeze.
Rod
Great shot Rod!!! Beautiful butterfly too. I see you have already put it in the bug files too! Texas looks a bit sparce on the map for that one. Congrats!
I think we need a thread for best host plants too.....for us poor newbies here!
I'll second that, nanny_56!
Equilibrium
Nov 11, 2007
Only three?
Echinacea (even the cultivars)
Dalea candida and D. purpurea
Clethra anlifolia
This message was edited Dec 16, 2008 7:49 PM
Rod's on butterfly time! I love it! It's so neat to see the tops of the sulphurs since I rarely see it out in the wild.
Melanie
Thanks for the list Equil! Clethra alnifolia would make a perfect replacement for my Buddleja daviddii in my native site around my pond. And the clovers you listed, Dalea candida and D. purpurea feed the butterflies and also put nitrogen back into the soil. Doing my homework now.
This message was edited Nov 11, 2007 3:29 PM
Equilibrium
Nov 11, 2007
I have the straight species Clethra as well as a few cultivars. I truly do love them. Those two native clovers are kinda hard to get if memory serves me. I had to grow mine from seed.
Rod - Love the photo of the Sulphur! Awesome!
I hear y'all about the nectar plants. Some plants are magnets no matter where you live! And everything seems to like the Milkweed flowers to nectar on. Must have a fair amount of nectar in those tiny blooms. I saw a Monarch yesterday trying it's hardest to get nectar out of a MIlkweed bud. The flower wasn't quite ready to open yet! Really funny! Poor thing wouldn't consider any other plant I had in the yard. It must've gone to sleep on an empty tummy that night! :-(
Nanny_56,
I think the subject of host plants is more fixed by the actual butterfly species. We won't have much to say about that. Most butterfly books have a very studied list of host plants and would be the best possible reference. The only difference would be where there will possibly be a different host plant according to climate zone, E.G., the milkweed here in Houston, Zone 9a will be different that say N.M. or Kansas. Here we get the most use of Mexican Milkweed - Aslepia. In higher elevations the Aslepia Tuberosa (sp?) will be the host favorite. There are also numerous Sennas, etc.
This is meant as a positive comment, to direct you to the best sources. If you are really a newbie, get copies of Butterflies through Binoculars (East or West or both), Kaufman's Butterflies of N.A., National Audubon Society Field Guide to N.A. Butterflies, etc.. You may also be able to get on-line a find one for your specific area.
You will find that planting the host plants will bring the butterflies to you. Planting the nectar plants will keep them there.
Rod (AKA butterfly whisperer :-))
Nanny - Welcome! I concur with Rod about checking online or borrow a book from your local library to find specific plants. Native plants are always better than hybrids or plants that don't normally grow in your region and zone. Butterflies know best! :-) And you definitely need BOTH host and nectar plants to bring them in and keep them in your yard!
If you check out this link by state and county, it may list some of your native plants for the butterflies:
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/map
And in the sticky thread there is a post with a link to a list of host plants for many of the common butterflies/caterpillars:
http://www.dallasbutterflies.com/Butterfly%20Gardening/Host%20Plants%20by%20Butterfly%20Species.htm
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=2886922
This message was edited Nov 11, 2007 10:07 PM
This is a single dahlia grown from seed, and rather tall at about 40". It required no staking and Monarchs favored it ahead of most everything except the Zinnias.
My List would be:
Zinnias
Single Tall Dahlias
Lantana
Suzy
Thanks Rod! That kind of occured to me after I posted. My bad......
becky, thank you so much for the links that will be very helpful to get me planning!!!!
Love your Dahlia, Suzy! I so want a package of your seeds! :-)
nanny - Glad you found those weblinks helpful! Good luck! Keep us posted on what you find out! :-)
It's interesting to look at the variety of plants in the posts. Thanks everyone for giving your top three and the 'why'. Lot's of good info here.
So it looks like butterfly gardening requires different plants from region to region and season to season and, of course, the southerners and those in the southwest seem to have an abundance of different butterflies to provide for and a long butterfly season to plant and plan for... (it's interesting, too, that we haven't had much response from those in the far west---they do have butterflies, don't they? just kidding,... of course they do..)
For those who want detailed lists for their particular state, city, or area, the North American Butterfly Association publishes these downloadable lists of butterfly plants recommended by specific local/state chapters and is very helpful:
http://www.naba.org/pubs/bgh.html
Your area is probably listed,...maybe not complete, but a good start and full of good tips for particular locales.
Illoquin--love your pic of the tall dahlia--is that a 'Bishop's Children'?
The host plant subject might be a good thread. I know here in Ohio the butterflies' host plants are a bit different than those down south. It takes a bit of research though to figure out the regional favorites since they are generally always lumped together on book lists and on the web. And, of course, there is a wide variety in the reports and personal experiences. Good to know, though.
In any case, I am going to make a spread sheet of our posts by plant and location and add it to my journal, and maybe report it to NABA. It would be a good magazine article, wouldn't it?
tabasco, thanks for the reminder about the NABA site. I just printed off the list for the Sarasota area, which is only 25 miles north of me, and found some things I had no idea would be a valuable addition to the butterfly garden.
Cathy
Tab,
Yes, those are from Bishop's Children. The butterflies totally ignored the big fancy dahlias.
I would also say that my butterflies did not care for the Benary's Giant Zinnias, either. They preferred the ones that were less attractive. After examining the flowers of each (Benary's and the ones they preferred) I came to the conclusion that the ones they preferred had a lot more stigmas between the petals than Benery's do.
Do you know what I'm talking about?
Suzy