Butterfly Gardening 101

Even though we are in the depths of winter, it is a great time to start planning your butterfly garden!

Reason's to start now:
- If ordering seeds, they may take weeks to arrive 
- Thinking about Summer may just raise your spirits
- Native plants often need a stratification period of 30-60 days
- Starting the seeds indoors will ensure they are ready to go when Spring arrives

Here are a list of common butterflies as well as their host plants, preferred nectar sources and native range.

Remember, pollinators have evolved with their host plants and they will only lay their eggs on these specific plants. They also need nectar-sources once they reach adulthood. Having a combination of both host and nectar plants will guarantee a thriving butterfly garden!

Lastly, please source your seeds from certified organic companies and avoid the use of pesticides which are harmful to butterflies and other pollinators.

(Eastern) Black Swallowtail

Host Plants: Dill, parsley, fennel, carrot

Preferred nectar sources: Golden alexanders (Zizia aptera and Z. aurea), Common Milkweed. Joe-Pye Weed, Late-flowering Boneset, Oregano, Privet, Purple Coneflower, Wild Bergamot, Zinnia

Native range: ​Most of the eastern U.S., north into Quebec, west into S. Saskatchewan, Colorado and SE. California; south to South America. 

Common Buckeye

Host plants: Plantains, gerardias, toadflax, snapdragons, false loosestrifes

Preferred nectar sources: Mist Flower, White Clover, Sunflower

Native range: Resident in the southern United States and north along the coasts to central California and North Carolina; south to Bermuda, Cuba, Isle of Pines, and southern Mexico. Adults from the south's first brood migrate north in late spring and summer to temporarily colonize most of the United States and parts of southern Canada. 

Monarch

Host plants: Milkweed species

Preferred nectar sources: Blue Cardinal Flower, Swamp Milkweed, Butterfly Milkweed, Common Milkweed,Heath Aster, Heliotrope, Joe-Pye Weed, Lantana, Late-flowering Boneset, Marigold, Mist Flower, Mustard Greens, New England Aster, New York Ironweed, Showy Coneflower, Smooth Aster, Wingstem, Zinnia

Range: ​Southern Canada south through all of the United States, Central America, and most of South America. Also present in Australia, Hawaii, and other Pacific Islands.

Conservation status: Overwintering sites in California and Mexico should be protected and conserved.

Mourning Cloak

Host Plants: Willow, aspen, cottonwood, elm

Preferred nectar sources: Oak tree sap

Native range: ​All of North America south of the tundra to central Mexico; rarely in the Gulf States and peninsular Florida. Also native to temperate Eurasia.

Note: Adults live 10-11 months and may be our longest lived butterfly!

Painted Lady

Host plants: Thistle, hollyhock, sunflower

Preferred nectar sources: Native thistles; also aster, cosmos, blazing star, ironweed, and joe-pye weed, red clover, buttonbush, privet, and milkweeds.

Native range: ​On all continents except Australia and Antarctica. From the deserts of northern Mexico, the Painted Lady migrates and temporarily colonizes the United States and Canada south of the Arctic. Occasionally, population explosions in Mexico will cause massive northward migrations.

Note: The Painted Lady makes a 9,000 mile roundtrip migration (almost twice as far as the Monarch) 

Red Spotted Purple

Host plants: Wild cherry, oak, poplar, hawthorn, willow

Preferred nectar sources: Spiraea, privet, and viburnum

Native range: Alaska and subarctic Canada southeast of the Rocky Mountains to central Texas; east to New England and central Florida. Isolated populations in Arizona, New Mexico, and west Texas south into Mexico. 
​
Note: The Red-spotted Purple is a mimic of the poisonous Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor).

Regal Fritillary

Host plants: Violets

Preferred nectar sources: Milkweeds, thistles, red clover, and mountain mint.

Native range: Tall-grass prairie remnants in Montana and North Dakota south to Colorado, Nebraska, and Oklahoma; rare or absent from former range east of the Appalachians.

Conservation status: Rapidly vanishing or declining in much of its range. A species of concern for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. All populations should be conserved.

Pearl Crescent

Host plants: Smooth-leaved true asters including Aster pilosus, A. texanus, and A. laevis.

Preferred nectar sources: Black-Eyed Susan,  Common Dandelion, Daisy Fleabane,  Garlic Chives, Heath Aster, Late-flowering Boneset, Marigold, Mist Flower, New England Aster, Sedum (Autumn Joy), Showy Coneflower, Small White Aster, Stiff Goldenrod, Coreopsis
​
Native range: ​Northwest Territories south along the eastern edges of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountains to central Mexico, east through all the eastern United States.

Tiger Swallowtail

Host plants: Willow, cottonwood, chokecherry

Preferred nectar sources: Blue Cardinal Flower, Bloodflower, Garlic Chives, Butterfly Milkweed, Common Milkweed, Daisy Fleabane, Dames Rocket, Dogbane

Native area: ​Eastern North America from Ontario south to Gulf coast, west to Colorado plains and central Texas.

Viceroy 

Host plants: Willow, poplar, apple, cottonwood

Preferred nectar sources: Aster, goldenrod, joe-pye weed, shepherd's needle, and Canada thistle.

Native range: ​Northwest Territories south along the eastern edges of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountains to central Mexico, east through all the eastern United States.

Conservation status: The Obsolete Viceroy has lost much of its habitat due to development and the exotic aggressive salt cedar. Restore riparian habitats in the Southwest (Moths and Butterflies of North America)

Zebra Swallowtail

Red Admiral

Host plants: Paw paw trees

Preferred nectar sources:  Blueberry, blackberry, lilac, redbud, verbena, dogbane, and common milkweed.

Native range: Central and South Eastern parts of the United States ​

Host plants: Nettle family including: stinging nettle (Urtica dioica), tall wild nettle (U. gracilis), wood nettle (Laportea canadensis), false nettle (Boehmeria cylindrica), pellitory (Parietoria pennsylvanica), mamaki (Pipturus albidus), and possibly hops (Humulus).

Nectar sources: Dogbane, Lantana, Marigold, Mist Flower, Privet

Native range: ​​Guatemala north through Mexico and the United States to northern Canada; Hawaii, some Caribbean Islands, New Zealand, Europe, Northern Africa, Asia.

Organic Seed Companies

References

Butterflies and Moths of North America. 'https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org'
Butterfly nectar plants. 'https://www.thebutterflysite.com/butterfly-food.shtml'
Butterfly host plants. 'https://www.thebutterflysite.com/create-butterfly-garden.shtml'