Hi, Is there a place to find a list of plants that are attractive to the hummers and butterflies? I'm really just learning and want to bring in some different things.
List of plants?
Here are two great links:
http://bexar-tx.tamu.edu/HomeHort/F4Best/nButterflyPlants.htm (for butterflies)
http://bexar-tx.tamu.edu/HomeHort/F4Best/nHbirdPlants.htm (for hummers)
Lorraine,
The package of seeds I sent you has Hummingbird Vine in it. Aka Cypress Vine and probably some other name too. I sent plenty so there is enough for you to take for yourself.
mj
Kayjones....excellent site!!
Thanks!
Here is a great one; it has different lists.
http://www.dallasbutterflies.com/ Click on the "butterfly gardening"
Thanks guys!!! All are good sites. I'm doing the January seed trade for the mixed seed nuts and it will be butterfly and hummer garden seeds, so I figure I need to know a little bit about it. lol
I have my doubts about that first site. They list some plants as larval hosts which I'd never heard of being host plants. I looked up Ox-eye Daisy and couldn't find anything about it being a host plant for any butterfly. I have that plant and haven't ever seen anything using it as a host plant. I haven't looked at the hummingbird list given with it yet.
Go to the thread that says "Where are all the hummingbird people?" I have had a Butterfly Hummer garden for years and they are really a lot of fun. When I find my list of other butterfly plants I will post them. I'm in Texas also so what works here will probably work for you too.
Ok here is the list of host and nectar plants that I said I would post:
TIGER SWALLOWTAIL
Host plant - dill weed
Nectar plants-coneflowers,mexican sunflower, petunia
CLOUDED SULPHERS
Host Plant-Senna, various legumes
Nectar Plants-Milkweed, tall verbena
PAINTED LADIES
Host plants- Holleyhocks, thistle
Nectar plants-Coneflowers, Tall Verbena
RED ADMIRAL
Host plants-nettle, Pellitory
Necar plants-Butterfly bush, coneflower
MONARCH
Host plant-Milk weed, blood Flower
Nectar plant-lantana,butterflybush, golden rod, orange butterfly weed
SPICEBUSH SWALLOWTAIL
Host plant-Spicebush
MOURNING CLOAK
Host plant-Cottonwood
ZEBRA LONGWING
Host plant-passionvine
GULF FRITILLARY
Host plant-Passionvine
SULPHUR SOUTHERN DOGFACE
Host plant-alfalfa
PIPEVINE SWALLOWTAIL
Host plant-pipevine
SILVER SPOTTED SKIPPER
Host plant-phaesoebus
SOME OTHER SUGGESTED NECTAR PLANTS ARE: Aster, Autumn Sage, Coral Honeysuckle, Indian Blanket, Mistflower, Salvia, Turk's Cap, verbena, zinnia
I know this is long. I hope it helps.
Lisa
Dill is a host plant for the Black Swallowtail, not the Tiger Swallowtail. TSTs use plants like ash trees and cherry trees here.
OK, I'm just going by my Texas Gardening book and my PEC Co-op power BUTTERFLIES OF TEXAS poster
I've seen errors on some lists before this. Look in the FAQ at the top of the forum for what plants can be used as host plants for different species.
Ok, don't laugh. What is a host plant? Common sense should tell me,but then I"m short on that commodity. !! lol
A host plant is a plant that the mother butterfly lays its eggs on. Then the caterpillars eat enough of the plant(s) to get to their pupation time (if they survive that long). A nectar plant is what the adult butterfly uses for nectar (food).
So, I shouldn't kill caterpillars? I've been killing those little suckers everytime I see one. Uh oh.
Well, you should check them out in the bug files. Some may be moths..in which case you can "relocate" them. But if you have host plants for BF's in your garden, then you maybe killing baby butterflies..........
mj
Here's another link to more Butterly NECTER and LARAVA Host plants...
It will give you more ideas.........
http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/butterflies/plant_sales.htm
mj
Hey Lorraine...
The caterpillars only eat specific plants so it is easy to check the plants you have on a host plant list then you can leave those cats to eat. I grow the plants for the cats but I have no use for praying mantis, grasshoppers, and spiders. However I don't mess with them if they aren't in an area of the garden that my butterflies don't use.
http://www.dallasbutterflies.com/
Click on "butterfly gardening" on this site and look at the list of host plants they show.
Hi Lorraine, I am going to add this to the thread. I have a hummingbird feeder on my deck and the cat and I are very fond of watching the little critters. One morning I was doing a crossword puzzle and heard the distictive whirrrrr of a hummer going by, but it didn't keep going. I looked up and it was hovering inches from my face. And it continued to hover. I was getting this sort of Hitchcockian feeling before it finally moved on to sweeter pickings. Later I moved indoors and looking in the mirror I realized what had attracted the bird. I was wearing a new hat given to me by a friend who had seen a production of "Little Shop of Horrors." While I don't think the words on the hat attracted the bird, I suspect the colors caught her fancy. Z
LOL!!
Ummm, now I'm thinking I might need to go out and find me a red gardening hat.....
And outfit it with a camera!
haha...saw the coolest little "tripod" today. It kinda looks like an octopus...has bendable legs and you can attached it (on your digital camera) to a post, chair, anything really. NOW that would be a sight!!!!!!!
I first noticed hummers at my place last summer when I was sitting under crepe myrtles with a red hat on when I heard this loud flutter sound and there was a bright ruby throated about 6 inches from my face. I looked around and discovered there were alot of hummers around zooming here and there. It only took me ten years to notice they were here. I then put up some feeders. In Sept sometimes I had 20 or more hummers at the feeders at the same time. Then a cold front came thru and they were gone. They were fun. I am now going to plant more hummer attractive plants. Nature has provided plenty of wildflowers for them here. They eat necture from wildflowers that are just inches from the ground. I do enjoy the feeders. They also hung out in the tomato patch sitting on the cages and tasting the blossoms.