I am working on my butterfly garden, I understand the stinging nettles is a host plant for several butterfly species,
Also if you have any seeds other than it for host plants I would love them. I have just enough common milkweed to plant, and some parsley, But I think thats about it.,
need nettles for the butterflies
I have yellow Butterfly Weed, Asclepias tuberosa 'Hello Yellow' and red & yellow Butterfly Weed , Asclepias curassavica 'Silky Formula Mix'.
These two are host to Monarch Butterflies.
I looked at your trade list and I would be interested in trading the above for some seed from your Devil's Trumpet and Maypop Vine.
Let me know.
Nana3
I dmailed you Nana3
If you still need stinging nettle in the Spring , write me ... I'm not sure how well the plants will transplant , but would send you some for postage. I don't have any seed though.
Thank you KathyJo, I really appreciate it. I am excited to get a butterfly garden going!
I will work on getting my trade list updated, and maby I will have something to interest you. Kelly
Hey there, kelboindy!
I thought I recognized your name!. We are in the same bf seed swap and I have lots of host seeds I haven't even started to list as available yet on that swap thread. D-mail me and let me see what kind of newbie bf host seed pkg I can put together for you. I'd be very interested in learning what type of garden you are planting and where in your yard it's located. Sometimes, location is everything. Even to the flying flowers!
Oh say, you may also want to think about growing Hops to attract the Red Admiral. It's not as wild as stinging nettles and it's a RA host plant too.
I love trades, but don't mind sending for postage... Love the butterflies and read every post over on the butterfly forum..
cord--didn't you mention that the echinops 'ritro' was a good replacement for stinging nettles in the garden too? Or is my brain deceiving me...?
Cordeledawg, I will dmail you now.
Tabasco, Im going to have to go look up Echinops 'ritro' I dont think I have even heard of it...
Oh, I forgot about E. ritro. That's exactly right T, it is.. You'll like E. ritro, Kelboindy, it fits right in among other eye appealing host and nectar plants.
I just looked it up, It is pretty cool looking, Different. And its a host plant?
E. ritro is not so invasive as Stinging nettles (as I recall) and it's very cute in the garden--I have a few, however, I confess I haven't seen butterflies on it, but, oh, well, maybe next year...!
Hope springs eternal! t.
Good luck Tabasco, Hope you get lots of butterflies later this year!!!
Send some my way too would ya?
LOL, I'm getting my butterflies confused. Sorry 'bout that. The butterfly cat in this picture eating Echinops 'ritro' is an American Painted Lady.
http://www.hort.wisc.edu/mastergardener/Features/insects/painted%20lady/paintedlady.htm
Kel, do you see many American Painted Lady bfs in your yard? E. ritro may be good host choice; and a good nectar one too. Plant it and see.
What a neat write-up on the APL! Really makes me want to go out and plant more Hollyhocks this spring! And sunflowers! Thanks for reminding me!
(I didn't plant any old fashioned Hollyhocks last year and really missed my APLs last fall.)
I am going to plant lots of snapdragons and hope for Buckeyes this year, too.
kelboindy--you might find 'Rose Franklin's Butterfly plant nursery' a good source for butterfly host plant ideas for our area--she has similar butterflies at her farm...And we get APLs here in Cincinnati, so I'm sure you will get them in Georgetown.
http://www.butterflybushes.com/butterfly_host_plants.htm
Those look very much like some I get around here, to my memory, But I have never tried to identify them before. Maby they are the cats that ate my sunflowers down to nubs!! I just let them, I think they are so cool! THIS year I want to take lots of pics and identify them all.......
OOOHhh this is exciting, and I think Im getting spring fever!
Im going to check out that site now Tabasco, Be right back.
I love that site too, Have you ever ordered from them before?
I have managed to identify some of the butterflies I get a lot of here, Black swallowtail, and Spicebush swallowtail for sure, I know there are more, Just cant name them yet.
Your excitement just fuels mine, Kel!
Taking pictures of the butterflies in your yard is a great idea! Those butterflies have made a nursery in the woods and ditches using plants that are indigenous to your area. So why not add a few more garden worthy ones in your yard to keep them coming back. That's what gardening for flying flowers is all about, right!
I'm having a ball trying to attract butterflies that I know are living around me but I rarely see them anymore.
Good luck to you on your butterfly mission. By the way, I'm sending you a D-mail about some additional plants you can grow for BST and Spicebush Swallowtails.
Yeay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This seems to me to be a very worthwhile project!!!
All the butterflies must have a nursery in the woods around here!
I was excited last year when a whole family of hummingbirds were 'argueing' over who got the feeders first!!
And the few flowers I had planted my first summer in this house had the butterflies fluttering all over! I know that everyone I have talked to around here uses no pesticides at all ever, I honestly believed that helped a lot. My neighbor has bee hives, And he shares the 'goods' so everyone helps out by no useing the pesticides.
I love this house and the neighbors and I dont plan on ever moveing again, so I am sooooo excited about beautifying the outdoors!!!
Dave's Garden is here for you Kel!
Yes, Dave's Garden is where you need to be!
I have ordered from Rose Franklin's site before (I think it was different milkweed seeds) but mostly I use it now for reference because she has excellent information about the same butterfly varieties that visit our yard. I would buy from her, but the garden centers and big box stores stock many butterfly plants now, and I get nectar and host plant seeds to grow myself through DG trades or the seed catalogs.
If you like to purchase seeds but don't want to spend so much, try ValueSeeds (the online outlet for Thomson and Morgan). I also buy from Onalee (a DG member) and Diane's Seeds, and Select Seeds, all online and catalog suppliers. There are many other good ones, too.
This past fall I began learning how to collect seeds from my garden, friends gardens and the parks around here. That is really a fun project and gives a new aspect to gardening too. Of course, I'm not so good at it yet--identifying the plants, labeling, finding the seed in the plants and drying them and sorting is something of an learning curve....
Also the Co-op forum is a good place to check. Right now they have a Canna Co-op going and the Hummingbirds are said to love love love red cannas. And easy to grow. There is also a Phlox co-op going and the butterflies use those for nectar plants.
And so we're all going to want to see pics of your garden and butterflies next summer! No excuses! t.
Oh Boy, Im going on line shopping soon!! I still am working up the courage to dead head other peoples flowers,LOL, or to knock on someones door to ask for some of their seeds, But my Mom will!!! Guess Ill have to take her driving around more this fall.. Haha...
Dont worry, Im gonna post pics of my before and after garden, and I cant wait to get some pics of the butterflies I plan to have visit my yard this year!!
Im also going to be doing some reading up on raising butterflys I hope I get the chance to do that too!!!
I thank you all so much for all the great ideas and information. You all are the greatest!!!!