An Observation on Butterflies

[roadrunner]

I've noticed in my own gardens that if you want to attract both a lot of butterflies and a great variety of them, you can't just have flowers; you MUST have host plants and a lot of them.

Years ago I got milkweed, because of all the news about how monarchs are in trouble, and I noticed that I suddenly had tons of monarchs in my yard, so much more than any other species of butterfly. Then I got a passionflower vine, then I noticed a lot of Gulf Fritillary and then the Zebra longwing butterflies started showing up, both use the passionflower vine as a host plant.

I just recently started growing fennel and I've noticed a lot of Swallowtail butterflies, so I planted some Rue (also their host plant) and now I've got these Swallowtails all over the place and I have so many caterpillars on my dying Fennel that I went out and bought three more Rue plants so I could hopefully save all these caterpillars.

It makes you wonder how they sense these host plants; flowers by themselves attracted a few here and there, but once I planted host plants, It's like they were sent a signal directing a whole flock to my yard.

 

[DirtMechanic]

I've noticed in my own gardens that if you want to attract both a lot of butterflies and a great variety of them, you can't just have flowers; you MUST have host plants and a lot of them.

Years ago I got milkweed, because of all the news about how monarchs are in trouble, and I noticed that I suddenly had tons of monarchs in my yard, so much more than any other species of butterfly. Then I got a passionflower vine, then I noticed a lot of Gulf Fritillary and then the Zebra longwing butterflies started showing up, both use the passionflower vine as a host plant.

I just recently started growing fennel and I've noticed a lot of Swallowtail butterflies, so I planted some Rue (also their host plant) and now I've got these Swallowtails all over the place and I have so many caterpillars on my dying Fennel that I went out and bought three more Rue plants so I could hopefully save all these caterpillars.

It makes you wonder how they sense these host plants; flowers by themselves attracted a few here and there, but once I planted host plants, It's like they were sent a signal directing a whole flock to my yard.

Smell. Seriously. Its a case of prominent probiscus.

 

[UrbanWild]

I stick dill, bronze fennel, parsley, and a few more just about everywhere there is a bare spot in a bed and you're right...they will find them. I also don't plant them in clusters but have them spread as singles or small groups all over the yard. I tried passionflower from seeds two years running. Nothing. Next year I'm getting a few plants.

I hope to run pipevine up the sides of my fire escape next year.