Planting for Butterflies

I have been revisiting Doug Tallamy's excellent book Bringing Nature Home when I came across this list of natives to plant to attract butterflies and moths on his website.  Doug's book is an exhaustive and inspiring look at natives plants and their place in the food chain. Even if you can only plant two of three of these flowers in your yard, you are creating a habitat that will pay off not only in butterflies and moths, but in song birds and more. Non-natives have no food value for many of our pollinators which then effects the birds that eat the larva of these insects and so on up the food chain.

So, when you're thinking of what to plant this year - take this list with you and see if you can't find some room for some of these lovely flowers in your yard.


Common Name          Plant Genus       Number of Butterfly/moth species supported
Goldenrod                  Solidago                      115
Asters                        Aster                           112
Sunflower                   Helianthus                     73
Joe pye,                     Boneset Eupatorium      42
Morning glory            Ipomoea                       39
Sedges                      Carex                            36
Honeysuckle              Lonicera                       36
Lupine                       Lupinus                         33
Violets                       Viola                            29
Geraniums                 Geranium                      23
Black-eyed susan      Rudbeckia                    17
Iris                            Iris                                17
Evening primrose       Oenothera                    16
Milkweed                 Asclepias                      12
Verbena                   Verbena                        11
Beardtongue             Penstemon                      8
Phlox                        Phlox                              8
Bee balm                  Monarda                         7
Veronica                  Veronica                        6
Little bluestem          Schizachyrium                6
Cardinal flower         Lobelia                           4