Container Gardening Complete

Job:06-700309 Title: CPS - Container Gardening Complete

700309 - ContainerGardens_001-272_FINAL.indd 144 6/5/17 2:38 PM
Job:06-700309 Title: CPS - Container Gardening Complete
Job:06-700309 Title: CPS - Container Gardening Complete

700309 - ContainerGardens_001-272_FINAL.indd 145 5/24/17 12:12 PM

Gardening to attract and support wildlife is a great way to be an eco-

conscious gardener. Incorporating the right kind of plants into your

landscape influences which types of insects call your garden home. This

project uses a combination of bright, colorful blooms to entice some of

the world’s most-beloved insects—butterflies.

Since most species of butterflies need different plants at different

stages of their life, it’s important to combine flowers that supply nectar

to adult butterflies with the specific plants their caterpillars use as

food. Most gardeners already know monarch caterpillars can only feed

on milkweed plants, but there are many other species of butterflies that

require a particular host plant to feed their young. For this project, begin

by selecting a mixture of plants that serve as either a nectar plant, a host

plant, or both.

MATERIALS NEEDED

2 or more plastic

bucket tubs with rope

handles, 17 to 20

gallons each

Enough 50/50 potting

soil and compost blend

to fill the tubs

6 to 8 butterfly plants

for each tub, selected

from the lists on

page 145

TOOLS NEEDED

Utility knife

Soil scoop

Work gloves

BUTTERFLY

GARDEN

TUBS

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Popular Nectar Sources for Adult Butterflies:

• Coneflower (Echinacea spp.)


• Bee balm (Monarda spp.)


• Goldenrod (Solidago spp.)


• Asters (Symphyotrichum spp.)


• Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum)


• Milkweed (Asclepias spp.)


• Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)


• Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)


• Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)


• Million bells (Calibrachoa spp.)


• Salvia (Salvia spp.)


• Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus and
  C. sulphureus)


• Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia)


• Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)


• Ironweed (Vernonia spp.)


• Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia spp.)


• Verbena (Verbena spp.)


• Heliotrope (Heliotropium arborescens)


• Phlox (Phlox spp.)


• Blanket flower (Gaillardia spp.)


• Lantana (Lantana camara)


• Liatris (Liatris spicata)


• Coreopsis (Coreopsis spp.)


• Yarrow (Achillea spp.)

Caterpillar Host Plants and Butterflies

These Plants Benefit:

• Milkweed: Monarchs


• Violets (Viola spp): Several species
  of fritillary butterflies


• Passionflower (Passiflora spp.):
  Gulf fritillary


• White turtlehead (Chelone glabra), hairy
  beardtongue (Penstemon hirsutus), and
  speedwell (Veronica spp.): Baltimore
  checkerspot


• Yarrow, borage, and sunflowers: Painted
  lady


• Hops (Humulus lupulus): Eastern comma
  and the red admiral


• Dill, fennel, and golden Alexanders
  (Zizia spp.): Eastern black swallowtail


• Asters: Pearly crescent


• Pussytoes (Antennaria spp.), hollyhock
  (Alcea rosea), and lupine (Lupinus spp.):
  American lady


• Blueberries and viburnums (Viburnum
  spp.): Spring azure

NOTE: As you build Butterfly Garden Tubs of your

own, include as many of these plants as possible.

Use a combination of the annuals, perennials, and

shrubs listed above for season-long color and a

varied food source for the butterflies.

Continued

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