This may be helpful

Here is a link that might be useful: Butterfly gardens

Gene's link is great! Lots of good info in there, and if you notice, some of the things we grow in our province unknowingly are wonderful plants for butterflies, such as willows and poplars.

One of the things to do if you wish to attract them and keep them healthy is to garden organically as much as possible.
Another is to introduce 'host' plants which will encourage the butterflies by providing them with a great food scource. A couple of years ago, I bought an Orange Twigged Willow. Grows like a large schrub, and in the winter, the branches are a bright orange - looks good against the snow. The schrub does not produce flowers and we noticed in the second year that the leaves were being chewed to bits. Come to find out it was the caterpillar of the American Painted Lady Butterfly which was feeding on it.
In the last three years we have not sprayed or fed our plants in a chemical kind of way. We make our own compost, and use a lot of things suggested by the Organic Forum here at GW.
The Yellow Swallowtails were quite the sight one fine afternoon last year. Too many to count.
We see the 'little blue ' butterfly on a daily basis - my daughter calls them as such.
The American Painted Ladies are always around when we garden.
And last year we saw our first Hummingbird Moth. Some refer to it as the Sphinx Moth. It will go from one bloom to another in the creeping phlox and makes a similar sound to the hummers, but they also have a probiscus like the hummers. Nearly as big too!! Just saw one the other day.
Vary your plants, look for those the butterflies can feed on and access - they can't get into a flower like the bees - and keep things healthy. They will soon find your gardens!

Is there an site or book that identifies the different butterflies ? I have quite a few flying around in my all natural gardens too..but I don't know who they are ??

Here's a site that shows images with names of who's who. Hope it helps.

Here is a link that might be useful: Butterfly images & names....

If you go to the site I posted and click on your region, then click on the butterfly picture at the top of the page, you should get all kinds of pics and their identification.

Even though they are seldom mentioned as attracting butterflies, the lilies in our yard attract more of these beautiful fliers than any other plant (including buddleia). Lilies are easy to grow, lovely to look at and tough as nails. Plus the bonus of butterflies AND hummingbirds which also seem to love the lilies.

Cheers,
MG

MILKWEED

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Comes in many colors: pink,white,yellow,orange. Grows 3 to 4 ft tall. Perennial
Attracts monarch butterflies. The caterpillars are yellow with black stripes. They eat the leaves when the blooms are spent and the fall is approaching. So they are not really damaging the plant because the plant will have finished it's cycle for winter anyway. The perfect "HOST" plant. Easily grown from seed germination is quick. Don't know if they bloom the first year from seed. Only did a germination test.
If you snip off the seed pods you won't have to worry about them reseeding like a weed. My plants grow into a nice clump that expands wider like any other perennial. Not invasive.
~Josie

Is there a place where one can order Milkweed on line ? I would love to grow some for the Monarchs.!!

GeneS and sydseeds...Thanks SO MUCH for the butterfly links you posted. Lots of info there...and a great way to identify the butterflies.
I grow lots of lily's and and other flowers that the bees love..so I'm hoping for more butterflies.
When my daughter was little...she used to call them "flutterbyes"...that suits them as well ..LOL

THANKS EVERYONE!!! I really appreciate this help. I have been out scouting the farm markets and they all want to sell me a "butterfly bush"..ughhh! This info has been most helpful. I will keep reading any new postings that come along and get to work with what you've sent. (Huge happy smile). Huggs to all!

Dusty, I am in NB and recently purchased 6 milkweed. They are available at local nurseries and the Superstore. After I purchased mine, a gardener friend told me they grow along the train tracks here. Oh well, at least I know for sure I have milkweed now. So far all are doing well. I am anxious to have more butterflies come around, we have lost so many in recent years, birds too. You can also purchase the butterfly bush at Superstore and Kents if that helps.
Good look and I hope you have many new visitors.
Taigen

Our neighbour let his barnyard go to milkweed. We deliver hay to him when it is in flower. The scent is almost overpowering, it is so wonderful.

Well...I'll be off to the Superstore garden center to inquire about Milk weed. Wish me luck.

One thing I read on the butterfly forum is that you have to be careful with store bought milkweed - it's often treated with pesticides, and several people have written about how they list their monarch caterpillars by feeding it to them. Once it's got it's own new pesticide free growth it should be fine.

Also, if a store is selling "butterfly bush" then you might want to get that too. It's probably Buddleia, and that will also attract butterflies - it's not a larval food plant, like milkweed is for monarchs, but butterflies of all sorts love it for the nectar. At least around here they do. Buddleia can easily be grown from seed, so if the plant is expensive you might just want to go the do it yourself route :-)

I'm out scanning my parsley everyday looking for black swallowtail caterpillars! Here's one I raised last year:

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BP

Is it possible to "wash off" any pesticide residue that may be on a newly purchased milkweed ?..(if I find some today at Superstore).
Also...A few times in very early spring..I have found little caterpillars crawling on my paths and I was told they were "wooley bears". I put them somewhere behind my babybarn where I knew the birds couldn't get them....and they would be safe..if they didn't freeze.
Would they have become butterflies ?

If the plants have pesticides they'll probably be something systemic, and so won't wash off, but if you knock off as much of the soil in the pot as possible then the plant won't have access to any more that might have leached into that soil. Any new growth and the flowers should be fine. The whole plant should be fine after a few weeks, once any pesticides used have degraded. it's just a precaution you need to take if you have existing caterpillars and run out of milkweed. You'd probably need to be careful with pretty well all commercially grown plants - they might be deadly for caterpillars. I have been told that I should never use store bought parsley to feed my black swallowtail caterpillars - fortunately I've never run out of my own parsley, so it's never been something I needed to worry about :-)

Wooly bears, if they're the black and brown banded sort, are the caterpillars of the Isabella moth. The yellow sorts with the black hairs are Tussock moth caterpillars. They overwinter as caterpillars, and pupate in the spring - the ones you saw had probbly just emerged form hibernation and were looking for a place to pupate.

BP

The ones I saw were the Isabella Moth ones. real cute and fuzzy. I hope the little guys made it ok till spring.
I went to one of the Superstores in Dartmouth today...and no Milkweed.
I also checked at Atlantic Gardens and they said they never heard tell of it. :((
Maybe tomorrow I can go one of the other Superstores and try there. If there is any Milkweed in Dartmouth...I'll find it ...LOL

Has anyone mentioned Lantanas yet? Every butterfly conservatories I have ever visited all over North America have Lantanas. Lantanas have many different shades (pink, peach, yellow, red, purple) and are also attractive to hummingbirds. I've found it very rewarding. I have posted some of my lantana pics in this forum.

Lantana will not survive the winter. If you want to grow it big, you can make it a cantainer plant and overwinter it indoor. If it is in a sunny position, it will bloom all year long.

There is a mail order company in Ontario that specializes in native plants and they have milkweed listed on their Nova Scotia page. It is called Wildflower Farm (www.wildflowerfarm.com) and they have both seeds and plants, although they only mail out plants in the spring. I haven't ordered from them yet but they have a good selection.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wildflower Farm

There are hundreds of species of butterflies in North America and Canada. If you want to attract a variety of species, you must plant a variety of plants. The following plants host butterfly caterpillars:
Hops Vine (Red Admiral)
Milkweed (Monarch)
Parsley, Dill, and Fennel (Black Swallowtail)
Elm, Willow (Mourning Cloak)
Cherry and Ash Trees (Canadian Tiger Swallowtail)
Thistle, Hollyhock, Borage (Painted Lady)
Pearly Everlasting, Cudweed (American Painted Lady)
Willow (White Admiral, Viceroy)
Clovers, Alfalfa (Various Sulfur Butterflies)
Nasturtiums, Cabbage (Cabbage White)

Dumb question, but is milkweed the same as Joe Pye weed? Looks very much the same except that Joe Pye is much taller. My Joe Pyes are just about to bloom now.

I planted dill to attract the swallowtail butterflies. I had one caterpillar last year but unfortunately a bird got to the poor thing.

Ianna

Merrilee and Butterfly 15..
Thanks so much for the link and the list of butterfly faves info.
I will order the milkweed for spring and have it available for the butterflies next year.
The list of other things that will help the butterflies is a good list to have.
There are cherry trees in the surrounding area...I grow Hollyhocks and have lots of clover...and many lilies.
Last week...I planted a Dutchman's Pipe..so I already have some butterfly favorites.
I'll keep working on the list :))