Flower Garden Lovers

How to Create a Butterfly Garden - 6 Important Tips

You want to create a butterfly garden to bring butterflies into your life. Why? Butterflies play an important role in the environment. They help pollinate flowers, fruits, and vegetables. They also charm us with their beauty and grace. A butterfly garden can draw these beautiful insects to your backyard. In today's article we offer some suggestions on how to create a butterfly garden and watch these gorgeous creatures come to into your life.

1. A sunny garden draws more butterflies compared to a shady one. Find the brightest section of your flower garden that gets about 5 to 6 hours of sunlight per day.

2. In order to make a butterfly garden flourish with exotic butterflies, you must create a create a butterfly garden sheltered from heavy winds that would blow them away and keep them from revisiting the area.

3. Butterflies do hibernate. If you do not have enough thick foliage in your flower garden then build a box that they can use that provides protection from harsh weather and predators. Spread small twigs and leaves inside the box to aid in the hibernation and egg laying. The box has to be at least 3 feet but no more than 4 feet above the ground. See our article about Butterfly Houses for more information.

4. Butterflies need to drink. You will need to have a source of water to make a butterfly garden. You also need to supply your garden with plants such as mint, milkweed, zinnias, buddleia, verbena, and heliotrope.

5. Butterflies (especially males) love puddles. To make a butterfly garden with permanent puddles, bury a bucket to the rim and fill it with gravel and sands. Pour liquids such as water, sweet drinks, or even stale beer.

6. Last but not least, the most important factor to consider in order to create a butterfly garden is to have plants that have nectar producing flowers that will attract butterflies. Certain types of plants attract certain species of butterflies. It is ideal to do a research on the types of butterflies you would like to add life to your flower garden and the types of plants they are attracted to. Examples of flowers that are attractive to many types of butterflies are Aster, Black eyed Susan, Butterfly weed, Coreopsis, Day lilies, Goldenrod, Hibiscus, Lavender, Lilac, Marigold, Butterfly Bush, Purple cornflowers, and Zinnias.

© 2006, Sandra Dinkins-Wilson

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© 2006, Sandra Dinkins-Wilson. Find more articles about a Butterfly Garden at our informative website, Flower Garden Lovers.
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