How about coneflower/Echinacea? Butterflies love to nectar on the flowers, and it's a host for silvery checkerspots, which I think occur in your area.
I've always wanted to grow Anaphalis margaritacea, a reputed host plant for American ladies, but it's native to just about every state in the union except the ones in the Southeast. Its flowers are darling, unlike the fluffy messes that our native AL host/Gnaphalium/cudweed makes. If you decide to plant it and want American lady caterpillars, you might check the FAQ and other sites to be sure that ALs actually like it well enough to lay their eggs on it.
Sherry

Thanks Sherry,
I do like echinacea, so I'll definately plant some of those. There's alot of different ones anymore. Do you consider the newer "models" as still being considered natives?
I planted some double decker ones in the back yard last year, and hope they do their doubling this year! I have lots of flowers in the back yard, but my sunny area has dwindled, so now we're reclaiming an area in the front, in the sun, where it gets extremely hot and dry.
I'll check out the Anaphalis margaritacea and see if I can get it around here.
Thanks for your suggestions!

Catherine, the double deckers look great but they don't attract butterflies. They are one of the only non-butterfly flowers I still keep in the garden.

What about adding anise hyssop? People in some of the warmer zones have said it doesn't attract a lot of butterflies but it is a huge attractor of monarchs and painted ladies in Minnesota! (Zone 4b)

Thanks coolbutterfly.
Oh dang.......I didn't know that about the double deckers!
Yes....to the anise hyssop! I actually bought a couple the other day and am waiting for the rain to stop to plant them.
I love those! Sometimes they come back the next year, and sometimes they don't.
Does Joe Pye Weed do well in really dry soil? I have it in a wetter/shadier area, but would like to put some in this dry, hot spot I have.

I've been thinking about moving one of my big trellises to this part of the house and planting a pipevine. It would shade the house from the hot sun and attract pipevine swallowtails. Does the Dutchman's pipevine do okay in hot afternoon sun??
Keep those suggestions coming! :)

I can tell you that Am Ladies LOVE Pearly Everlastings. I had a tray of them last year, and eggs were laid on every plant. They love the flowers. They prefer them to the cudweed here.

I've only got the pure species type of Echinacea, Catherinet, so I don't know about the many new cultivars. I've been tempted to order 'Tomato Soup' because I like the color!
Sandy, are the flowers of pearly everlasting as cute as they look in the pictures?
Sherry

Catherine,
I have lots of plants here in zone 6 that lived through the drought we had last year with a little bit of watering. Purple coneflowers live in dry conditions, and mine is out in the hot sun. Hardly any of my plants are even in a little bit of shade. My pussytoes and pearly everlasting were okay last year in the sun and they didn't get watered at all because the hose won't reach that far. I get lots of American Lady cats on them every year. I mentioned a lot of my plants in another post on here to someone, so maybe you can find that post (it's one of the most recent ones).

You asked about pipevine. My Big Leaf Pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla) grows great out in the hot sun here in zone 6. The only time that it gets shade is about after 5:00 PM when the trees to the west of it cast some shade, but otherwise it gets direct sun the entire rest of the day. We had cut down a tree and had this 8-ft high tree "stump" left that we used for our clothesline but later got a clothesline pole. So I found another use for the cut-off tree by putting a makeshift trellis on it:
{{gwi:474970}}

When I saw that the pipevine was outgrowing that, I bought a roll of wire fencing, cut it into 3 equal sections, and layered them on top of each other, making a 12-ft-high trellis for the pipevine. Here are 2 of the sections before they were put on top of the first section:
{{gwi:474971}}

Here is the entire thing after it was put together (it took 5 of us to lift it up over the dead tree, not because of weight but because of the size):
{{gwi:474973}}

These were my very first Pipevine Swallowtail babies:
{{gwi:474976}}

Here is one of the adults that I released...they're such beauties and my favorite to raise:
{{gwi:474978}}

Side view of a Pipevine Swallowtail:
{{gwi:474980}}

Here are some on the coneflowers after they were released:
{{gwi:474982}}


I haven't posted pictures for awhile, so now I guess I have an overload. :) I have so many on here, it would take me hours upon hours to post all of them.
Cathy

New England Aster, Asclepias Tuberosa (orange Milk weed), Obediant Plant, Dill, Parsley, Fennel, Zinnias, Monardas of all types. Good luck. Where are you? I could donate some volunteers if you are close enough to get together.

Martha

I want some of those pipevine swallowtails SOOOOOO bad!!

I think they are the prettiest butterflies I've ever seen!

They look like jewels hanging from the Purple coneflowers.

Betty

Thanks everyone!
Great pics Cathy!

In answer to your question, Sherry, yes, the flowers on the Pearly Everlastings are really cute, but look quick, that's what the caterpillars love most.

I have Tomato Soup and several other of the named cultivars of coneflower. I love them. Tiki torch is one of my faves. It just keeps on keeping on.

I love all the agastaches available as well. These plants are some of the mainstays in the nectar area of the garden.

I also love the new coreopsis varieties. And the butterflies like them for nectar. Favorite is Route 66. This will be my second year growing the different coreopsis.

Sandy

Cathy, I can't believe the size of your mamma jamma Pipevine! Jimminy Cricket! And those photos of the Pipevines is Birds and Blooms quality! I think you should submit it. Wow!

I don't just want Pipevine butterflies, I want Cathy's Pipevine butterflies!

The best all-around plants for numerous butterfly species for me was Cosmic Orange Cosmos. Everything from Skippers to Monarchs to day-flying sphinx moths to Hummingbirds love the stuff, and it needs virtually no water.

Susan

Thanks for the nice comments about my photos, everyone.
Betty, I hope that the pipevine swallowtails will find you soon. They really are neat caterpillars to raise. I think it's funny that you can actually hear them eating. I was sitting here in the kitchen one night the year I started raising them and kept hearing this sound and kept looking and listening and finally tracked it down to the Pipevine Swallowtail container. I had read before on here how they make noise when they eat but wasn't really thinking about it at the time.

Susan, Yes, didn't those pipevines get big though! I had a little growth the first year, more the next year, and the third year is when it really took off and also the first year that I got Pipevine Swallowtails. This year I should be able to feed an army of them! If I could buy fencing for around our yard, that's what I'd put on it. This could be the PVS capital of PA! lol Oh, and sorry but you can't have my Pipevine Swallowtails. ;-)

I agree with you about the orange cosmos. It's definitely a butterfly draw! I have 4 that came up from winter sowing. I wanted them but not a lot of plants because they really throw down the seeds. I do love the flowers though. I think I should have added that to my list of flowers that most attract the butterflies. For me it's those, coneflowers, butterfly bush, and Verbena bonariensis.
Cathy

My coneflowers (the species purpureum) don't attract that many butterflies for some odd reason.

Yes, I love having the Verbena b. in the garden. Altho it is loved by all the butterflies, the Buckeyes go gaga over it, acting like they are drunk or something.

I want to get some more Lantana this year. My big 'Miss Huff' bit the dust the year before last - too cold and wet for it I guess. Now, that is another drought tolerant plant, but would definitely be an annual in any zone colder than 7.

Susan

Susan, That would be a sight to see drunk buckeyes. :) When I had Giant Swallowtails here for the first time (2008), the V. bonariensis is what they loved to nectar on. Last year I had dozens of Silver-spotted Skippers on it. It would be great if this year is as good a butterfly year as last year was.

I've seen various people mention that coneflowers don't attract butterflies at their places. I don't remember where they lived though. It's weird how they like one thing at some places and others elsewhere. I know that the butterflies will not even pay any attention to lantana and Joe Pyeweed here, and I know that lots of other people have good luck with those.

Cathy

The Joe Pye Weed here does not attract very many butterflies at all. I would love to get rid of it, but I'm not really into digging things up cuz of my back problems. It is the only called "Little Joe", and the stems are hollow, so that whenever we get a big storm, the stems bend over and it just looks unsightly.

I just love the Silver-Spotted Skippers. I always have at least a pair of them all summer long. I love how the males will perch on things and watch for the females. Think they are being so sneaky. Ha. She has them figured out! I got a new Dianthus last year, and it bloomed this year - absolutely gorgeous. It is about 18" tall - tall for a Dianthus - and has striking hot pink bloom clusters. Makes the whole garden light up. The SSS LOVED this plant and you're right, they love the Verbena b., too.

I have heard that Buckeyes will use the Verbena b. as a host plant, but I've never found them on it. Probably not a "preferred" host. But, the Buckeyes are pretty "general" in their plant preferences.

I have planted my "patch" of red Zinnias - different reds. We'll see how that turns out. I just keep seeing that photo posted last year of the red Zinnia patch that was so beautiful. I hope the butterflies like it.

Susan

That's curious about your Joe Pye Weed Susan.......mine usually get butterflies all over it....but I'm in central Indiana. Was yours naturally occurring or did you buy it?

A native in my garden that gets lots of attention in the spring is the itea. I have Little Henry. When it is in bloom, the butterflies cover it. You can smell it before you get to the garden. The sad thing is that the blooms don't last long. It's bad about suckering, but, so is passionvine. Just yank 'um up, or dig them and share them! The fall color is very nice, also.