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Butterfly Plantings
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Part of the enjoyment you get from your flower garden is probably the sight of beautiful butterflies flitting in and out around your flowers. By planting specific plants that butterflies especially like, you can attract even more butterflies and keep them happy enough to stay for a while.
Here is a list of some of the plants that butterflies really like and the approximate times they bloom. It's a good idea to plant plants that will bloom at different times in order to always have a great supply to keep the butterflies around longer.
Daylilies - Late Spring to Summer
Iris - Late Spring
Lavender - Summer
Milkweed or Butterfly Weed - Early to Late Summer
Petunia - Spring thru Fall
Phlox - Summer
Asters - Summer to Fall
Butterfly Bush - Summer
Heliotrope - Spring thru Fall
Cosmos - Late Spring to Early Fall
Clover - Summer
Zinnia - Late Spring thru Fall
Purple Gayfeather - Summer
Bee Balm - Early Summer thru Mid Summer
Some other things you can do to make your flower garden a great hangout for butterflies is to place some flat rocks in a sunny spot for them to rest on. You can set up a mister and also place some pieces of rotting fruit or watermelon rinds out for them to feed on. Keep in mind that the fruit could possibly attract ants, if that's a problem for you. You can also place a small shallow dish of water in a handy location for the butterflies.