Make Your Garden a Butterfly Oasis

By: Anne Wuerslin
Colorado State University Extension Master Gardener in Larimer County

Now is the perfect time of year for butterfly activity; these active and graceful pollinators seek the sweetness of late summer nectar-producing plants. Look around at purple butterfly bushes, yellow black-eyed Susan, coneflowers, asters and daisies and delight in the movement and lightness of these beautiful insects. If your garden lacks these charming visitors, plan now to attract them for next season.

Plan it, plant it and they—the butterflies—will come.

Butterflies undergo a complex life cycle. Adult females lay eggs on host plants that provide forage for the developing larval (caterpillar) forms. Caterpillars grow and molt successively, then form a resting stage (chrysalis) and, by metamorphosis, become an adult butterfly. Butterflies are cold-blooded day fliers who require sunshine and warmth for growth and reproduction.

A butterfly garden provides a biodiverse habitat that has plants for the entire life cycle of the insect, including host plants for larvae and nectar plants from spring to fall. A successful butterfly garden will include:

Plant Diversity

Annuals, perennials, shrubs, wildflowers, vines and native species all provide nutritive nectar energy for butterflies. Plants like butterfly bush, goldenrod, aster, coneflower, bee balm, daisy, lantana, gayfeather, yarrow, sedum, phlox, butterfly weed, honeysuckle vine, and sunflowers are just a few. Yellow, orange, red and purple flowers are desired, especially those flowers which form clusters of tubular clumps such as Buddleia. Group similar colored plants together. Butterflies do not hover like hummingbirds, and seek umbrella shaped flowers (i.e. coneflowers) for a “landing zone” to feed and pause. Some butterfly species have specific host plants for larval growth. The Western black swallowtail feeds on fennel, parsley, cow parsnip and dill. The monarch butterfly only feeds on milkweed (Asclepias). Plant cultivated milkweed (A.tuberosa or butterfly weed) for larval habitat in the spring, and then nectar producing yellow, orange and red-orange flowers in the summer. The fritillary butterfly is attracted to sedum for similar reasons.

A natural Colorado meadow is an area where butterflies abound. Using native species and wildflowers in a messy wild patch of the garden encourages over wintering and gives butterflies and other insects a home and protection.

Shelter, Sunshine and Moisture

Butterflies need the warmth of sunshine. On cold or cloudy days, the early morning hours is spent basking, often on a warm rock, resting with wings stretched and refolded as the temperature warms. Butterflies are most active between 75-90 degrees F. A butterfly garden should have mostly sun and some shade. Butterflies also need shelter from wind for egg laying and rest. A windbreak or a flowering hedge can provide this. Butterflies cluster at the edges of shallow sandy areas for drinking and mating purposes. A shallow bowl of water with a few stones or pebbles to provide a resting spot is an alternative in the home garden. Butterfly houses can provide additional protection.

Chemical Free Environment

Insecticides and added chemicals interrupt the life cycle of the butterfly, so as much as possible, butterfly gardeners should try to use natural methods for pest control. The more natural a habitat, the more successful butterfly populations will be. Do not be too hasty to eliminate an unknown caterpillar in the spring. Use an insect identification book and save a potential butterfly for your garden oasis.

Additional References: Butterfly Gardening, Vera Krischik, University of Minnesota Extension, 1998: Table 4 Butterfly and Moth Garden Plants.

Also, visit www.ext.colostate.edu ^[1] and search for CSU Fact Sheet #5.504, “Attracting Butterflies to the Garden.”

Gardening Tips

By: Mitzi Davis
Colorado State University Extension Master Gardener in Larimer County

1. Early blight (Alternaria solani) is a common fungal disease of tomatoes in late summer. Dark, concentric ½” circles on lower leaves are an indication of the disease. Remove any volunteer tomatoes from the garden, avoid bruising leaves—especially when wet, and clean up garden debris when the season is over. Early blight can also infect potatoes and eggplant.
2. For great bouquets from your garden, cut the flowers with a sharp knife or scissors at an angle to take up more water. Place the flower stems into a CLEAN bucket of warm water right in the garden and then keep them in the coolest place in the house for a few hours or overnight before arranging. Before arranging, fill a clean vase with cool water and floral preservative. Then cut the stem of each flower at an angle and arrange your bouquet.
3. Pinch off the tips of tomato plants and start to withhold water. This will stop new blooms from forming and will hasten the ripening of fruit already on the plant.
4. Pick summer squash, zucchini and cucumbers every day or two to keep the plants producing.

Gardening Q&A

By: Lee Stewart
Colorado State University Extension Master Gardener in Larimer County

Q: How and when do I plant garlic?

A: Plant garlic in August or September to establish root growth before frost. Individual garlic cloves should be planted in well-drained soil, rich in organic matter. Mulch the soil after the ground freezes to prevent frost heaving. Garlic may need supplemental water during winter months if natural precipitation does not occur.

Q: I have small light-colored spots on the bottoms of my tomatoes. They seem to enlarge and then turn black. What is wrong?

A:  Blossom end rot is caused by a combination of cold temperatures, excessive heat and/or fluctuations in water supply. These factors cause a calcium deficiency during fruit formation. Fertilize and water tomatoes properly, and use mulch to help control soil moisture. For more information on this and other tomato issues, visit the CSU Extension website at www.ext.colostate.edu ^[1] and read Fact Sheet #2.949, “Recognizing Tomato Problems.”

Q: My carrots have bushy, slightly discolored tops, and the carrots are hairy when I pull them from the ground. What’s wrong?

A:  This is likely aster yellows, and is caused by an insect known as the aster leafhopper. Unfortunately, there is no effective control for this disease, but it generally doesn’t happen frequently in the garden. Sanitation is key; be sure to clean up the garden in the fall and dispose of any debris. If insects are a problem, do not compost the material—throw it in the trash.

The authors have received training through Colorado State University Extension’s Master Gardener program and are Master Gardener volunteera for Larimer County.

Larimer County is a county-based outreach of Colorado State University Extension providing information you can trust to deal with current issues in agriculture, horticulture, nutrition and food safety, 4-H, small acreage, money management and parenting. For more information about CSU Extension, Larimer County, telephone (970) 498-6000 or visit www.larimer.org/ext ^[2]

Visit PlantTalk Colorado ™ ^[3] for fast answers to your gardening questions! PlantTalk is a cooperation between Colorado State University Extension, GreenCo and Denver Botanic Gardens.