All About Butterflies & Plants that Attract Them
How to Attract Butterflies to Your Garden
Top Tips, Must-Have Plants & Why Butterflies are Worth the Buzz
Ahhh, butterflies. Nature’s fluttering little miracles. Whether you’re 5 or 85, there’s just something magical about seeing one float through the garden. And what’s even more magical? Watching the entire transformation—from hungry caterpillar to delicate, winged beauty—happen right in your own backyard.
With just a little know-how and the right plants, you can attract butterflies and support their full life cycle in your landscape. Here’s how to get started.
🦋 Top Six Tips for Attracting Butterflies
1. Plant in Full Sun
Butterflies are solar-powered! They need sunlight to warm their wings, and most nectar plants thrive in full sun anyway. If space allows, plant in clusters—larger patches of flowers are easier for butterflies to spot and more likely to keep them hanging around.
2. Include Nectar Plants
Bright, nectar-rich flowers are like candy for butterflies. They especially love red, yellow, orange, dark pink, and purple blooms. Bonus points for fragrance—their antennae can detect scent, helping them find flowers from a distance.
3. Don’t Forget Host Plants
This is the key to experiencing the full butterfly life cycle! While nectar plants feed adult butterflies, host plants are where they lay eggs—and the leaves feed their caterpillars. Yes, that dill or parsley might get a little chewed, but the payoff is priceless.
4. Skip the Pesticides
No sprays, please! Even organic or natural pesticides can harm butterfly eggs, caterpillars, and other beneficial insects like ladybugs and praying mantises. If you want a thriving butterfly habitat, pesticide-free is the way to go.
5. Learn About Local Species
Want to attract black swallowtails? Monarchs? Each butterfly species has its own preferences. Check out Butterflies and Moths of North America to see which species are native to North Carolina and which host and nectar plants they prefer.
6. Add a Water Source
Butterflies need a drink, too! A shallow dish, bird bath, or even a muddy puddle gives them a place to rehydrate and “puddle”—a behavior where they absorb minerals from wet soil or sand.
🌸 Best Plants for Attracting Butterflies
Below is a curated list of butterfly-friendly plants we recommend, broken down by plant type. *Host plants are marked with an asterisk.
🌿 Perennials
- Asclepias tuberosa – Butterfly Weed*
- Echinacea purpurea – Purple Coneflower
- Monarda didyma – Bee Balm
- Rudbeckia hirta – Black-Eyed Susan
- Liatris – Gayfeather
- Gaillardia – Blanket Flower
- Verbena bonariensis – Verbena*
- Lavandula – Lavender
- Nepeta – Catmint
- Salvia – Sage
🌼 Annuals
- Anethum graveolens – Dill*
- Foeniculum vulgare – Fennel*
- Petroselinum crispum – Parsley*
- Passiflora – Passion Flower*
- Pentas – Penta
- Tagetes – Marigold
- Impatiens
- Heliotrope
- Lantana
- Oregano
- Rosemary
🌳 Trees, Shrubs & Vines
- Buddleia – Butterfly Bush
- Clethra – Summersweet
- Vitex – Chaste Tree
- Abelia
- Mimosa
- Weigela
- Honeysuckle
- Spiraea
If You Plant It, They Will Come 🌿
No matter the size of your garden or your experience level, you can create a haven for butterflies. Start with sun, skip the sprays, add a few favorite plants, and keep your camera ready. Because once they start fluttering in, you’ll want to capture every moment.
Ready to build your butterfly garden? Come visit us at Fairview Garden Center—we have fresh arrivals, expert advice, and all the pollinator-friendly plants you need!