Getting masses of butterflies would require having masses of butterflies in the area - if they're not there, no matter what you plant, you're not going to get that many on any one plant. The plant that gives me the most butterflies in the smallest area is tithonia/Mexican sunflower - a grouping of them would be your best bet. Remember, too, that butterflies sometimes chase each other off 'their' nectar plant - male pipevine swallowtails do this reliably.
Sherry

Thank you for the reply, Sherry!

I'm working on having the "masses" in my area via incorporating host plants (I'm growing host plants for about 10 species right now, though some have not yet been discovered). I'll see several butterflies in my yard on the days that I'm gardening, and some weeks I free a dozen or more (plus the ones that fend for themselves and aren't enclosed). I know it takes a while to keep boosting the population, but I'm definitely noticing an increase. :)

I am planning to relocate some plants this fall, because I want to have more of the host plants and nectar plants near my windows so that I can enjoy seeing butterflies even when I'm not outside (so butterfly plants will go near the windows, and non-butterfly plants will go further away in the yard). I will look for tithonia, thank you!

Hi Lauralilly,

I am also in Houston and have had lots of luck with Duranta. Stay away from the one that produces yellow berries (supposedly good for the birds, but I have never seen a bird near the duranta berries) and it has thorns that are mean! The sapphire showers (I think that is what it is called) is a good choice: no thorns and it has deep purple flowers with a white edging around the bloom, the butterflies absolutely love this. Tithonia (aka Mexican Sunflower) is hard to find as a plant and expensive when you do. Best bet is to purchase seeds in January and plant inside to get a jump on the season, then transplant to your flower bed. They stay little for a long, long time and then suddenly they are 5 feet tall and covered with blooms. My tithonia didn't do very well at all this year, but in years past it has been wonderful for the butterflies as well as the hummers.

Another suggestion is to go to the garden centers and see what plants are attracting the butterflies. I saw them "attacking" the mandevilla and immediately purchased 4 plants. They are just now getting established, so hopefully next year they will bloom more than they did this year and attract the butterflies like they did at the nursery.

Mechelle

I have a butterfly bush that I see several painted ladies, one to three Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, and Silver-spotted skippers each day, and others as well from time to time. There are normally just a few at a time, though.

My grandson and I walked over to a neighbor's house that has 3 butterfly bushes together, and saw more butterflies there, so next year, I'm planning on planting a couple more.

I'm thinking when my asters bloom, I will see more.
Sue

Asters are a sure hit in my area--late fall nectar source. Last year I would have upwards of 10-12 monarchs on one stand. Other plants that have also worked are boneset (eupatorium perfoliatum), verbena bonariensis, mexican sunflowers, rudbeckia, and stoke's aster. As many say on this forum, it can vary year to year. Last year, the boneset could have 5-7 butterflies on it--all of different species and all day long, and this year, maybe one or two butterflies when I pass by. It's funny.

Like you, I am also trying to create more butterfly beds out back nearer my kitchen windows, deck, and pseudo-gazebo area. It's so nice to see them out there. I'm working on gradually creating an enclosed seating area, surrounded by butterfly gardens.

I have to say in my garden, mums have been the biggest hit. In fact, it was my mums and observing all the different butterflies on them one morning in late October that spurred my interest in butterflies.

Lisa

Definitely butterfly bushes in my yard... I have 6 big ones and 3 smaller ones, and a couple tiny ones.
Followed by Lantanas and then zinnias.

I get mostly Pipevine Swallowtails, Black Swallowtails and Gulf Fritillaries. LOL, not surprising, given that I released 98 Pipevine Swallowtails this month. The passionflower vine is just a few feet away from the butterfly bushes, so those Gulf Frits can eat some nectar and then lay their eggs on the vine (and boy... they really do!). Plant some passionflower vine and watch those beautiful orange and silver butterflies appear out of nowhere!
This year I also found Achemon Sphinx caterpillars for the first year on my grape vine and all of a sudden Yellow Bear caterpillars all over my yard in the honeysuckle, lantana and pentas.
Sure seems like "plant it and they will come" is a true statement!

I have Sedum in my front yard near my shrubs. It only blooms in the fall but every time we go out we have up to 20 skippers on the plants. I am working on moving some of it back to my garden. Last year we had the same result. I know there are many varieties of Sedum. Mine has bright pick flowers.

Ann

They really enjoy sipping my Anise Hyssop flowers- I get all kinds, shapes sizes of butterflies.......plus they love my Butterfly bushes..
Good luck!
Kasha77

In my garden the Pink Delight Buddleia is a big attractor, and also Purple Coneflower. The Black Swallowtails love the pink Phlox too. This is my first experience with Phlox, and I will definitely get more next year.

Sue

Thank you all so much for the recommendations! I've dropped quite a bit of my gardening budget on new nectar plants based on all of this info. I've also seen long-tailed skipper butterflies for the first time ever in my garden (so what I'm doing to attract more seems to be working, to my delight), so hopefully it's just a matter of time before they find their host plant. ;)

And I bought a book that had a few bits of useful information for me (Garden Butterflies of North America, by Rick Mikula). His top three recommendations for nectar plants are:
1. Butterfly bush/buddleia ("Black Knight" is his favorite, but he assures the reader any variety will do the trick)
2. Lantana (Lantana camara)
3. Pentas Laceolata/Egyptian Star Flower

I'm growing all three now. :)

Apparently, there also IS something to the idea of butterflies being more attracted to some colors than others. The author states that flower colors are attractive to butterflies in the following order:
1. Purple
2. Pink
3. Yellow
4. White
5. Blue
6. Red

That has already been useful to me when choosing flowers in the nursery, so I wanted to pass that along to the rest of you in case others will find it similarly helpful. He also recommended planting on a slope or raised bed when possible (so the butterflies see the colors from multiple angles) and reaffirmed the importance of planting flowers in mass together as opposed to a little of this and that spread out.

Thank you again so much for your recommendations; I'll continue to watch this thread for any new ones. Happy gardening!

Butterflies are "finicky", too. One year, they will be all over some nectar plants, and the next year, it will be something else. That's why having a variety of different plants is wise to be successful in providing them with nectar. Usually anything "native" to your area is sure to attract them in droves because the "nectar" has not been bred out of the plant in resulting cultivars. Altho, some cultivars are great, too. Sometimes, it is just hit or miss with each and every year.

Going to garden centers, or parks is a good idea to assess what might be best for your yard. If there is a nature habitat somewhere you can visit, try that too if you'd like. Mine has just been collect, collect, collect (acquire) as many plants as I can. Many host plants provide nectar as well - such as Asclepias curassavica. Pretty much all of the butterflies that visit my yard, love it, plus it hosts Monarchs. Woo-hoo!

Have fun!

Susan