Butterfly-Friendly Plants
A natural attraction
The best way to get butterflies to come to your yard is to offer them a smorgasbord of food that grows naturally right in your garden. Butterflies, first and foremost, eat nectar from a variety of flowers. By doing this, they can also aid in pollination of the flowers. There are many different, beautiful flowers that you can plant that will not only attract butterflies, but may also attract birds to your yard as well.
Butterflies seek out plants that will sustain them through all their stages of life. They will lay their eggs on a food plant so that the caterpillars can have an uninterrupted source of food while they grow. Later, when butterflies are in their adult stage, they will seek out nectar-producing plants to sustain themselves. You can provide these food sources, and create a habitat for butterflies, by doing your research and choosing plants that will be attractants.
Some butterfly-friendly plants include:
These plants are nectar-producing and will yield great results when planted in such a way to provide butterflies with easy access. Some weeds, like dandelions, are also attractive to butterflies, so don't get too crazy when it comes to weeding the lawn. You may see more of the colorful insects in your yard this way. To really make butterflies feel at home, plant shrubbery or vines along a fence to give them a place to shelter, but make sure that there are some sunny open spaces for them to bask in the warmth from the sun. You can try setting up a butterfly house or feeder as well.
Never use pesticides to kill unwanted weeds or flowers because they can harm butterflies and you'll end up with a yard full of dead butterflies instead of seeing them fluttering from flower to flower. Pesticides also hurt other animals, like squirrels and birds. You want your garden to be a place of nature, so you may have to give up some manicuring to achieve this.
