Plant list

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Black-eyed Susans were taken from country road sides. You only need a few because they reseed and every seed must come up. This flower is good for attracting butterflies because of its color and the large platform for them to land on.

The Blanket flower is a Perennial that is easy to grow. We let it get overrun by our Verbena. Some of the seeds are coming up but the main plants were choaked out.

Brazilian Vervain is a common flower that can be found along most country roads. Butterflies and bees love it. It stays in bloom for a long time. It grows to about five feet. If you cut it back before it blooms, you can keep it short with more flowers. Vervain spreads by sending out more roots and shoots. It is hard to keep contained.

Lantana attracts lots of butterflies! We planted about 12 plants that were in four inch pots. We didn't think they were going to do much at first--we were wrong. Once they started growing, they covered an area about 10x20. We planted the nonhardy type and every one of them has come back. They are even sending out runners and spreading.

Milkweed is one of the plants that we knew we had to have. We wanted to attract Monarch butterflies and it is the host plant for their larva. We found some next to a highway that was usually sprayed to kill the weeds--we thought we could save some. It was hard to dig and we only got part of the tuber. We planted it anyway and it grew. We like the looks of the orange milkweed but some people don't. It is very hardy and comes back each year. Its only draw back is the fact ours gets lots of aphids.

Mexican Hats were found along dirt roads within five miles of our school. They are a very pretty plant and require very little care. Late in the Summer the plant will sew its seeds and die back. Early next Spring they will return.
We went with Native Azaleas instead of the ones you see around town. The Native Azalea sheds its leaves during the winter. That is one reason that most people don't put them in their yards. One we have is a very bright orange (shown in picture)and the other one is white with yellow and red strips. It looks a lot like a Honeysuckle. We watched a Monarch spend most of the day feeding on the orange bush.

We found the Iris in a ditch that was about to be cleaned out by the county. They are much smaller than Bearded Iris you find in most gardens. We have never seen any butterflies feed on them--still they are pretty and were going to be destroyed anyway.

The Passion Flower grows on a vine. If you plant one; expect to have seversl others. They spread underground. It is worth the time it takes to keep it under control. Make sure you have something for it to climb. It is the host plant for the Gulf Fritillary and the Zebra Longwing. We have also seen other larva on Passion Flower.

Queens Anne's Lace is a member of the carrot family. It is one of the host plants for black swallowtails. It comes back each year and the seeds take root almost anywhere. It is another plant that you will need to watch or it will take over.

The large Sunflower came up in our garden on its own. Probably dropped by a bird feeding at the feeder. We liked it so much that we planted several of them in our garden this year. We also have two other types of native Sunflowers. Hairy Sunflower and Woodland Sunflower were found on a lot that was being cleared for a new church.

Thistles are one of the host plants for the larve of Painted Lady butterflies. Cut the heads off before they go to seed.

White Coneflowers were planted from plants that were bought at a local nursery. They were expensive even for small plants that were in four inch pots. We also started some from seeds. The butterflies loved the ones that bloomed(store bought). The seedlings will bloom this year and we let some of the flowers go to seed. We have little coneflowers everywhere.

Purple Coneflowers attract all types of butterflies including this Painted Lady. One of the third grade classes raised Painted Ladies and released them in our garden.

The Zinnia is one of the few annuals we have in our garden. They are very easy to grow from seed and are inexpensive when started by a nursery. They add lots of color and are fast growing. All the buterflies like them.

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