Attracting Butterflies: Butterfly Garden Plant Guide
Variety Information – Butterfly Plant Guide
Butterflies add beauty, movement, and life to any garden while playing an important role as pollinators. By planting a variety of butterfly-friendly plants, you can create a landscape that provides nectar for adult butterflies and host plants where caterpillars can grow and develop.
Adding butterfly plants to your landscape is an easy way to support local wildlife while enjoying colorful blooms and butterflies throughout the growing season.
Why Butterflies Are Important
Butterflies help pollinate flowering plants as they feed on nectar and are an important part of a healthy ecosystem. Just as important, their caterpillars provide a valuable food source for birds and other wildlife.
To attract butterflies, include both nectar-producing flowers and host plants where butterflies can lay their eggs. Planting a variety of species that bloom from spring through fall will provide a continuous food source throughout the season.
Creating a Butterfly-Friendly Garden
A successful butterfly garden provides food, shelter, and places to reproduce.
- Plant a variety of nectar-rich flowers
- Include native host plants for caterpillars
- Choose plants with overlapping bloom times
- Avoid using pesticides whenever possible
- Provide sunny areas for butterflies to bask
- Add shallow water or damp soil where butterflies can drink minerals
The more diverse your landscape, the more butterfly species you’re likely to attract.
Best Trees for Butterflies
Many native trees serve as host plants for butterfly and moth caterpillars while providing food and shelter throughout the year.
Featured Trees:
- Flowering Dogwood
- Eastern Redbud
- River Birch
- Black Cherry
- Serviceberry
- Tulip Poplar
These trees help support butterfly populations while adding seasonal beauty and shade to the landscape.
Best Shrubs for Butterflies
Flowering shrubs provide abundant nectar while many native shrubs also serve as host plants.
Featured Shrubs:
- Buttonbush
- Summersweet (Clethra)
- Virginia Sweetspire (Itea)
- Spicebush
- New Jersey Tea
- American Beautyberry
Many of these shrubs also provide berries that support birds later in the season.
Best Perennials for Butterflies
Perennials are among the best plants for attracting butterflies because they produce reliable blooms year after year.
Featured Perennials:
- Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
- Purple Coneflower (Echinacea)
- Bee Balm (Monarda)
- Blazing Star (Liatris)
- Black-Eyed Susan
- Joe-Pye Weed
- Aster
Planting a mix of these perennials provides nectar from spring through fall while supporting a wide variety of butterfly species.
Native Virginia Plants for Butterflies
Native plants are some of the best choices for creating a butterfly-friendly landscape in Richmond. Because they evolved alongside our native butterfly species, they provide the nectar and host plants butterflies need to complete their life cycle.
Milkweed is essential for Monarch butterflies, while Spicebush supports Spicebush Swallowtails, and native asters and goldenrods provide critical late-season nectar for migrating butterflies.
By incorporating native trees, shrubs, and perennials into your landscape, you’ll create a beautiful garden that supports butterflies and other beneficial wildlife for years to come.
Build a Butterfly Garden
Whether you’re planting a small garden bed, refreshing an existing landscape, or creating an entire pollinator garden, butterfly-friendly plants will bring color, movement, and life to your outdoor space.
Visit our Garden Center to explore our selection of butterfly-friendly trees, shrubs, perennials, and native plants. Our team can help you choose the right plants for your landscape and create a garden that attracts butterflies from spring through fall.
