Hi, trying to get seed for a butterfly garden adn want to make sure these will work. I know some to use, but not many, so could you help.
Cleome
Zinnia
Hibiscus
Lantana
salvia
4 oclock
Virginia Stock Malcomia Maritima
Any of those work? Any other suggestions. Doing it for a l ittle grand daughter, so it doesn't have to look perfect, just lots of color. LOL
Will these work for butterfly's
Cleome is good; we've used it as a host for Cabbage White butterflies. Zinnia is alway good, especially the flat kind (better for butterflies to stand on while they eat). Lantana and salvias of any color work well.
I have a lot of success with porterweed, plumbago, pentas - I guess butterflies like the letter "P", lol! Make sure to get some milkweed, too. It's a great nectar plant, plus you'll attract Monarch caterpillars.
Melanie
Some links to good info here:
http://www.texasento.net/plnts.htm
I didn't know about the milkweed. I have some. !!!! Yea! Thank ya'll so much. Gonna go check out the link above.
Plumbago is a Butterfly Magnet!! Hibiscus also, and the Sulfurs LOVE my Impatens.
Wish I could do the Milkweed, but we have a horse farm and I'm afraid it will escape into the pastures. Signifigant others previous home had them EVERYWHERE after acquiring just one plant.
They aren't all invasive. None of the milkweed I have are.
LindaTX8,
Which ones do you have? Will they grow in Florida?
I grow mainly Mexican Milkweed. Then I have a little Antelope Horns and Texas Milkweed, native species here. I think Mexican Milkweed would grow there. Not sure about the other two...don't know what other places they could grow. Of course, I've heard that plants can be invasive in one place and noninvasive in another place.
Hi Lorraine,
Watch the MW as it first comes up in the spring. The Monarchs will lay eggs and you will see cats very early as they start the return from Mexico. I had cats in April last year.
The sulphurs and Black Swallowtails are here in early spring too. Plant some parsley, dill, or fennel for the BSTs and the Candletree for the sulphurs. Established parsley plants will stay green all winter here and be ready for the BST. If you can't find some seeds that you need, just ask here and I am sure someone will have them.
OK...I've started an Herb garden and already have Fennel, curley and flat Parsley. I 'm growing my herbs in pots, maybe in the back of my herb garden. Can I grow the milkweed in pots where I can maybe contain it so it doesn't get loose in my horse pastues? If I snag the seed pods off before they get mature. I could put the pot in the back of the Herb Garden maybe????
Pic of Herb Garden...Just done last weekend, more to do but could maybe stick the MilkWeed in the back right corner.
This message was edited Nov 14, 2008 5:25 AM
I just wanted to add that it's a good idea to take the seed pods off anyway. Milkweed bugs like to eat the seeds so I always cut the seedpods off to help prevent them. They'll still come, but not as many.
Melanie
You can try the MW in a pot mjs..
But it gets quite leggy. If you are going to cut the pods off anyway why not put it in the ground? It doesn't spread from roots. I find the Mexican MW will put out more shoots the following year, but it spreads very slowly here from seeds. They can also be pulled up very easy if you don't want them.
I got my milkweed in a trade, and it only had "milkweed" on it, so I don't know what kind it is. Is there any way to tell,?
Check out these: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=Asclepias&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=with&Search=Search
But if it hasn't bloomed yet, I don't know about getting an id.
Hasn't bloomed, but name on it was swamp milkweed. Got some seeds with that name too, then some with just milkweed. The one that just had milkweed was smaller than the others, but looked the same.
If it looks the same it may be a perennial also like swamp mw.
If you had a pre-trade list maybe it is on there?
Lorraine..all of your suggestions are very good for butterflies, as well as marigolds & cosmos..I still have those left in my garden because I see the migrating butterflies still coming to those.....don't forget globe amaranth will also attract them.
oh, so that's what I saw in Baton Rouge..was the Mexican Milkweed..wow, I hope I can get that in North Texas & that it will grow, as the butterflies were certainly attracted to it..I took a picture of it to look up the plant..thanks so much for the info folks!
I didn't know about the globe aramanth, and I just happen to have seeds. Yippee. !!!!
Lorraine, the nice thing is once you've planted them they come up again & again! hahaha..I've noticed I have 4 o'clocks reseeding!!! yikes! :0)
Pot'em up and take them to the swaps next year.
Somethings just don't want to go away.!!!! Morning glories sure don't. I found one blooming in the middle of the yard, not a flower bed in sight. (Well, at least not one close to it.) lol
Asclepias tuberosa aka "Butterfly Weed" is a milkweed.
Comes in several colors I've seen in catalogs lately - I believe the "original" is the orange.
I have seeds to trade if anyone's interested!
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/73/
Not at all invasive here in zone 5, but perennial. Dies back entirely and comes out again later than most so it often gets forgotten about and pulled! I have one that's 2-4 years old, hip high, and making seeds like a monster. I've also planted it at neighbors' homes and those are shorter, but making seeds like monsters!
I had a morning glory vine behind the A/C unit outside!!! I know it came from a planter I had but had dumped the soil there..I am keeping it there & hope to plant more there next year as it's a good spot!! hahahaha