Tag Archives: butterfly gardening

An Instant and Everlasting Butterfly Garden

Posted by Lesley on July 28, 2012 None comments

Remember the Cassia tree I staked out a silent auction for?  It died, but don’t feel sorry for me, it left behind a lineage.  Two months ago, I trimmed back its dead branches to form this au natural bottle tree.See that little squirt of a Cassia tree to the bottom-right?  Today, it’s crowding out the bottles.And this formerly flying seed found a home in an empty pot on the other side of the patio. There’s nothing but bright yellow blossoms and butterflies to look forward to with this tree.  The original came home with a cloudless sulpher caterpillar attached and attracted butterflies within days. Butterfly gardens usually require a combination of plants, and they take time to establish.  A cassia tree is an insta-butterfly garden.  It won’t attract more than the sulphur variety, but with their bright yellow and orange wings, they’re enough to enchant any garden. 

Sleepy Orange

The Power of Pentas

Posted by Lesley on June 14, 2011 2 comments

It could be the bright red color or the stars filled with nectar, maybe it’s the landing pad that’s created from all those little stars.  Most likely it’s the combination of all three that make Pentas the most sought after flower in my garden.  Butterflies can’t keep their proboscises out of them.

I love them because even in the heat of summer when all the other leaves and petals are curling inside themselves to escape the sun, pentas are still perky.  And any flower that is a friend of a butterfly’s is a friend of mine.  The bees like them too.

Pentas are perennials in Florida but annuals in other parts of the country.  They’ll grow up to 4-feet tall, a fact that eluded me until I planted two in full sun.  They dwarf their shaded counterparts.  Ideal growing conditions for pentas are under full sun in moist, well-drained soil. 

Got Milkweed?

Posted by Lesley on May 1, 2010 3 comments

The only thing unattractive about milkweed is its name.  Weed carries a negative connotation for most gardeners; it implies pesky or intrusive, but milkweed is neither.  It produces bold little blooms and attracts over 160 species of butterflies!  I thought it was just monarchs, but they’re simply the most familiar because monarchs feed solely on milkweed.  Depending on where you live, milkweed will attract viceroys, queens, skippers, fritillaries, and more.  This is only one of the five monarch caterpillars I’ve seen in the past two weeks on my two milkweed plants.

     

John called me a nerd when I stuck this bumper sticker on my car, but I love it!