Butterfly Friendly Plants for your Garden

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Book a date with your local native nursery, everyone loves a shopping trip!



What do native mulberry, emu foot and birdwing vine all have in common? They are all local plants that you would want in your new butterfly garden, of course!

Following up on my article, Designing a Butterfly Garden at Home, the next step in the process of creating a butterfly-friendly garden is to know which plants to select that cater to both adult butterflies and their larvae (caterpillars).



Adult butterflies are attracted to and feed from nectar-rich flowers. Female butterflies seek out specific 'host' plants to lay their eggs. These host plants provide the perfect food for their young, caterpillars. By incorporating a variety of native plant species, gardeners can offer a sustainable habitat that supports the entire life cycle of butterflies.



NECTAR PLANTS FOR ADULT BUTTERFLIES
Nectar plants are essential food for adult butterflies, providing a source of sugar to fuel their flight. When choosing nectar plants, consider flowers that are brightly coloured with a flat or tubular shape. These are easier for butterflies to access. Any flowering plant can potentially feed a butterfly if the length of the butterfly's proboscis matches the depth of the flower's nectar stores. Native plants are especially beneficial because they are well-adapted to the local climate and soil, and they support local butterfly species.



HOST PLANTS FOR CATERPILLARS
Host plants are crucial for butterfly reproduction. Butterflies lay their eggs on these plants and caterpillars will feed on them after hatching. Each butterfly species has specific host plant requirements. Some caterpillars can feed on a range of host plants. Others are reliant on only one or two plant species. Including a variety of native host plants will attract a diverse range of butterflies to your garden and help to ensure the survival of local species.

LOCAL NATIVE BUTTERFLY HOST PLANTS
Local native plants are particularly valuable in butterfly gardening as they are best suited to support local butterfly species. By choosing a combination of nectar-providing and host plants, you can create a vibrant and supportive environment for butterflies in your garden. 



Check out the list of native butterfly host plants below, decide which butterflies you would love to attract to your garden, then book a date with your local native nursery - everyone loves a shopping trip!

Common name: Barbed-wire grass
Botanical name: Cymbopogon refractus
Form: Grass
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Evening brown, Melanitis leda

Common name: Flax lily
Botanical name: Dianella caerulea
Form: Grass-like plant with attractive purple flowers and berries
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Dingy grass skipper, Toxidia peron



Common name: Mat rush
Botanical name: Lomandra sp.
Form: Hardy, versatile grass
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Brown ochre, Trapezites iacchus



Common name: Tussock grass
Botanical name: Poa labillardierei
Form: Soft, graceful tussock-forming grass
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Banded grass skipper, Toxidia parvulus



Common name: Kangaroo grass
Botanical name: Themeda triandra
Form: Grass: A versatile plant with attractive orange seed heads
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Evening brown, Melanitis leda



Common name: Emu foot
Botanical name: Cullen tenax
Form: A hardy groundcover with tiny purple pea flowers
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Chequered swallowtail, Papilio dfemoleus

Common name: Round leaf goodenia
Botanical name: Goodenia rotundifolia
Form: A hardy ground cover with attractive yellow flowers
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Meadow Argus butterfly, Junonia villida



Common name: Love flower
Botanical name: Pseuderanthemum variabile
Form: An excellent groundcover for shady areas and pots
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Blue-banded eggfly, Hypolimnas alimena



Common name: Crenate fanflower
Botanical name: Scaevola albida
Form: Attractive ground cover perfect for edging and small spaces
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Meadow argus, Junonia villida



Common name: Native wisteria
Botanical name: Callerya megasperma
Form: Great flowering vine for pergolas and arbours
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Narrow-banded awl, Hasora khoda



Common name: Native sarsaparilla
Botanical name: Hardenbergia violacea
Form: Climber with abundant purple flowers
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Common grass blue, Zizina labradus



Common name: Wax flower
Botanical name: Hoya australis
Form: Vine
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Common crow, Euploea core

Common name: Birdwing vine
Botanical name: Pararistolochia praevenosa
Form: Host plant for caterpillars of the vulnerable Richmond Birdwing Butterfly
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Richmond birdwing, Ornithoptera richmondia



Common name: Coffee bush
Botanical name: Breynia oblongifolia
Form: A hardy shrub with attractive pink-red fruit
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Large grass-yellow, Eurema hecabe

Common name: Blackthorn
Botanical name: Bursaria spinosa
Form: Shrub
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Fiery copper, Paralucia pyrodiscus

Common name: Finger lime
Botanical name: Citrus australasica
Form: A native citrus with small edible fruit valued for its distinctive caviar-like pulp
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Dainty swallowtail, Papilio anactus

Common name: Hop bush
Botanical name: Dodonaea triquetra
Form: Hardy shrub with attractive papery seed capsules
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Fiery jewel, Hypochrysops ignitus



Common name: Bolwarra
Botanical name: Eupomatia laurina
Form: A shrub suitable for shady spots
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Eastern dusk-flat, Chaetocneme beata



Common name: Native indigo
Botanical name: Indigofera australis
Form: Shrub featuring dainty pink pea flowers
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Tailed pea-blue, Lampides boeticus



Common name: Blue tongue
Botanical name: Melastoma malabathricum
Form: Great all-rounder shrub for wildlife-friendly gardens
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Coral jewel, Hypochrysops miskini



Common name: Plumbago
Botanical name: Plumbago zeylanic
Form: Small shrub that can be pruned to form a compact hedge or allowed to trail over edges in a rockery setting
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Zebra blue, Leptotes plinius



Common name: Paper daisy
Botanical name: Xerochrysum bracteatum
Form: Low-maintenance shrub with attractive, bright golden-yellow flowers
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Painted lady, Vanessa kershawi



Common name: Koda
Botanical name: Ehretia acuminata
Form: Small tree
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Hairy line-blue, Erysichton lineata



Common name: Sandpaper fig
Botanical name: Ficus coronata
Form: Small tree
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Common moonbeam, Philiris innotata

Common name: Native mulberry
Botanical name: Pipturis argenteus
Form: Small tree, wonderful for attracting a range of native wildlife to your garden
Butterfly (caterpillars feed on plant): Jezebel nymph, Mynes geoffroyi



PLEASE NOTE: Only one butterfly has been listed for each host plant to keep the table a manageable size. Some plants support a number of butterfly species. This list is not exhaustive; it includes plants that will suit common backyard situations and are available at local native nurseries.

The Sunshine Coast and Brisbane share the same South-East Queensland climate and coastal corridor and because of this, we can see almost exactly the same butterfly species in both regions, which means that the butterfly-friendly plants in this article are relevant to both areas.

Information with thanks to www.botanic-garden.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au 

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