Designing a Butterfly Garden at Home

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Provide habitat to attract butterflies to your garden to help them thrive



Butterflies are more than beautiful garden visitors. They are essential to a healthy environment. Read on to learn more about how you can attract butterflies to your garden and how to design a garden that provides habitat to entice these stunning 'flowers of the sky' whilst helping them to thrive in your own backyard.



•BUTTERFLY FRIENDLY FEATURES
A butterfly garden can be large or small. Start by incorporating some of these butterfly friendly features into your backyard.

Plant diversity - Support butterflies at all stages of their life cycle by using local native plants of various heights with nectar-rich flowers to attract adult butterflies, and host plants to provide food for the caterpillars. Providing flowers may bring butterflies to your garden, but incorporating host plants will help to 'grow' more butterflies.

Windbreaks - Butterflies are delicate and can struggle in windy conditions. Planting dense shrubs, hedges or installing fences can act as windbreaks. Protect your garden and create calm, sheltered microclimates where butterflies can comfortably feed and rest.

Help attract this cool caterpillar to your backyard by planting the Richmond birdwing butterfly vine.


Sunny spots - Butterflies are cold-blooded and rely on external heat to warm up and become active. Ensure your garden has plenty of sunny spots where butterflies can bask in the sunlight. Position nectar plants and basking stones in areas that receive direct sunlight.

Rockeries - Rockeries provide warm, sheltered spots where butterflies can bask and regulate their body temperature. Placing rocks in sunny areas allows them to absorb and retain heat, creating an ideal resting place for butterflies.

Water sources - Small ponds or bird baths with gently sloping sides can offer water sources. Ensure some shallow areas where butterflies can land and drink safely without the risk of drowning.

The caterpillars of the Common Crow butterfly prefer to munch on plants like Monkey Rope vine and native figs such as the Small-leaved fig.


•BUTTERFLIES LOVE COLOUR, SCENT AND TEXTURE

Colour - Butterflies are attracted to bright, vibrant colours. Include a variety of flowers in hues of red, yellow, orange, pink and purple. Plant them in clusters to create a visual impact and make it easier for butterflies to spot the blooms.

Scent - Fragrant flowers can draw butterflies from a distance. Include plants like pavetta (butterfly bush), pink euodia, wattles and citrus, all of which release scents attractive to butterflies. Ensure a mix of early, mid and late season bloomers to provide a consistent source of nectar.

Texture - Different butterflies are attracted to various flower shapes and structures. Incorporate a mix of plants with diverse textures, including flat-topped flowers (like fan flowers and daisies), tubular flowers (like native plumbago) and composite flowers (like paper daisies). This variety caters to the feeding preferences of different butterfly species.



•WATER AND MINERAL SOURCES FOR BUTTERFLIES

Drip plates and ponds - Shallow dishes filled with water, pebbles and sand can provide hydration and a safe landing surface. Place these in sunny spots in your garden.
Moist soil - A patch of moist soil, kept consistently damp, creates a “puddling” area for butterflies. These areas provide opportunities for adult butterflies to access important minerals and nutrients from soil.

For more butterfly inspiration or to visit a newly opened Butterfly Garden, please follow my article on the recently opened Butterfly Garden at the Maroochy Regional Bushland Botanic Garden here.

The Richmond Birdwing vine is essential for this butterfly's survival, as it is the only plant their caterpillars can eat. Females carefully select fresh leaves on which to lay their eggs.

With thanks to www.botanic-garden.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au for Designing a Butterfly Garden information.

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