Butterfly Gardens

Q. Would like to plant a 'butterfly garden' in the spring. I am working on ridding the area to be planted of all the weeds and grass. Any suggestions of possible plants to attract butterflies would be appreciated. We live in SE Nebraska.

A. What a wonderful idea. I have given advice before for what to plant but cannot locate my article. Here is what I recommend:

Butterfly gardens are a great source for your own enjoyment photo opportunities or an outlet for artistic talent. These gardens can also be extended to interest youth in nature by providing a small window of native inhabitants of the local environment.

Different species of butterflies have different preferences of nectar in both colors and tastes. A wide variety of food plants will give the greatest diversity of visitors. Try staggering wild and cultivated plants as well as blooming times of the day and year. Groups of the same plants will be easier for butterflies to see than singly planted flowers. Some varieties of flowers which are easy to grow and will be attractive to many species of butterflies include:

Aster
Black-eyed Susan
Butterfly weed
Coreopsis
Daylilies
Goldenrod
Hibiscus
Lavender
Lilac
Marigold
Orange-eye Butterfly Bush
Oxeye Daisies
Phlox
Pink Azalea
Purple Coneflower
Redbud
Rosemary
Verbena

All insects are cold-blooded and cannot internally regulate their body temperature. Butterflies will readily bask in the sun when it is warm out but few are seen on cloudy days. It is a good idea to leave open areas in a yard for butterflies to sun themselves as well as partly shady areas like trees or shrubs so they can hide when it is cloudy or cool off if it is very hot. Butterflies also like puddles. Males of some species congregate at small rain pools. Permanent puddles are very easy to make by burying a bucket to the rim filling it with gravel or sand and then pouring in liquids such as stale beer sweet drinks or water. Overripe fruit allowed to sit for a few days is a very attractive substance as well.