Of the many creatures at home in the garden, few can match the grace and beauty of butterflies. They are important pollinators and a delight to see in any garden.
A garden that includes plants for the entire life cycle will attract a variety of native butterflies. Butterfly larvae need host plants for food and as a place to pupate, while adult butterflies require nectar sources for food and plants for egg-laying.
Tips for Planting a Butterfly Garden
To attract a diversity of butterflies and other pollinators in your garden, select a variety of plants with different floral colors, shapes, sizes and bloom times. The following plants are native to the Mid-Atlantic region and are listed based on their benefit for the different butterfly stages.
Caterpillar Host Plants | Plants for Nectar Sources |
Trees | Shrubs |
* Salix caroliniana (willow) | * Symphyotrichum spp., Eurybia spp., etc. (aster species) |
* Asimina triloba (pawpaw) | * Coreopsis verticillata (whorled tickseed) |
* Betula nigra (river birch) | * Echinacea spp. (coneflower) |
* Carpinus caroliniana (American hornbeam) | * Eupatorium fistulosum (Joe Pye weed) |
* Cercis canadensis (Eastern redbud) | * Gaillardia x grandiflora (blanket flower) |
* Cornus florida (dogwood) | * Gaura lindheimeri (Lindheimer's beeblossom) |
* Juniperus virginiana (Eastern red cedar) | * Heliopsis helianthoides (smooth oxeye) |
* Ptelea trifoliata (common hop-tree) | * Hibiscus moscheutos (rose-mallow) |
* Sassafras albidum (sassafras) | * Nepeta x faassenii (giant catmint) |
* Quercus velutina (black oak) | * Oenothera spp. (evening primrose) |
Shrubs | * Phlox carolina (thickleaf phlox) |
* Lindera benzoin (spicebush) | * Phlox paniculata (fall phlox) |
* Rhus spp. (sumac) | * Parthenium integrifolium (American feverfew) |
* Viburnum dentatum | * Rudbeckia fulgida (Black-eyed Susan) |
Herbaceous Perennials | * Sedum spp. |
* Antennaria plantaginifolia (pussy toes) | |
* Symphyotrichum spp., Eurybia spp., etc. (aster species) | |
* Asclepias incarnata (swamp milkweed) | |
* Chelone glabra, C. lyonii (turtlehead) | |
* Penstemon digitalis (talus slope penstemon) | |
Grasses | |
* Panicum virgatum (switchgrass) |