Category Archives: Nectar Plant

April 26, 2013 · 9:51 pm

Growing Lantana in St. Louis

2016 Notes

I had lantana come back in three areas. The winter was fairly mild so I was expecting it all to come back, but no such luck. The lantana next to the foundation all came back. I got about 20% return from other areas. I even had some tropical milkweed come back by the basement wall.

lantana-2016

 

———————————————————————–

 

Lantana-Miss-Huff-01

One of the easiest growing nectar plants to grow in St. Louis is Lantana. There are two basic types – an upright-tall-mounding species and a trailing/spreading/lower growing species. Here are some tips.

  • Don’t cut the stems back until you see signs of new growth in the spring. Most lantana will not over-winter, but a couple varieties will. Don’t cut those back until the very latest. (this is a bit controversial)
  • Lantana loves sunshine. Only plant it where it gets at least half-day sun.
  • If you want lantana to come back every year, trying growing varieties which are hardier. Miss Huff is the hardiest and Star Landing is somewhat hardy. They have both come back over two winters – Miss Huff does seem to be stronger and hardier – although a bit less colorful. Mozelle and Sonset are other varieties which I plan to try. Also Imperial Purple, Lantana montevidensis is possibly hardy (trailing).
  • Miss Huff and Star Landing both get about four feet tall and four feet wide – give them plenty of room to grow.
  • I also like to cover up my lantana in the fall with leaves to help protect the plant from the cold.
  • Likes a well drained soil – possibly raised beds, so that the roots don’t get wet, freeze and damaged.
  • One of the main advantages of lantana is that it blooms all summer long with no dead-heading! Where I have enough sun, I prefer this to butterfly bush.

Leave a comment

Filed under Nectar Plant

March 15, 2013 · 1:46 pm

Butterfly Bush Tips

butterfly-bush

Over my past three seminars, many of the questions were about butterfly bush. Here are a few of my tips about this butterfly magnet.

  • Cut back the old growth to 6 inches in very early spring. I know it sounds drastic, but it will be more vigorous and more manageable.
  • They prefer sunshine, but will grow in partial shade. They just won’t do as well.
  • Keep it deadheaded. The more you deadhead, the more new blossoms you will have.
  • The standard varieties will get a minimum of six feet tall and five feet wide. Give them some space to grow.
  • Try growing the smaller Nanho varieties. I’ve had good luck with Nanho Purple. They get to be four to five feet tall. I’ve had poor success with other dwarf varieties  Look at my Plant List.
  • Later in the year, they don’t bloom as well. Make sure you have other nectar sources in your garden.
  • Usually color doesn’t matter, but I would stay with the standard purple colors. Some of the hybrids don’t do as well. One of the participants said that he had an orange butterfly bush and the butterflies never went to it.

butterflybush-cut-down-800

Leave a comment

Filed under Nectar Plant

March 13, 2013 · 7:19 pm

Host Plant + Nectar Plant = HosNec

asclepias-curassavica-01

Many times, after a two hour butterfly gardening presentation, four exhibits and 196 slides, the final question most often asked is, “What one plant should I buy that will get me started.” The answer I always give is Butterfly Weed, Asclepias tuberosa.

It’s a hardy perennial which is not only a host plant for the monarch caterpillar, but is also a good nectar plant for many other butterflies. It’s two-two-two plants in one.

For the small garden, using this type of plant which I have dubbed, HosNec, is ideal.

For butterfly neophytes, I should explain that each type of butterfly has a “preferred” plant on which it will lay its eggs. Monarchs lay their eggs on types of milkweed. The Pipevine butterfly lays its eggs on Pipevine. These plants are called host plants as they provide nutrition for a growing caterpillar, also called a larva. If the butterfly lays its egg on the wrong plant, the caterpillar will likely starve to death.

Nectar plants would seem to be easy to find. Almost every hardware, grocery and nursery is filled with blooming plants in the spring. Butterflies however, are picky feeders and definitely prefer certain flowers.

You can now start to see that trying to find a “HosNec,” combination host and nectar plant, starts to become a challenge for any gardener.

Here is my list of Missouri native HosNecs to jump-start your garden this year.
Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
Host – Monarchs

It’s number one on my list because it takes zero maintenance and is a nice medium size. Note – it will take about three years before it grows to a decent size, so you might want to spend a little more and buy a good size plant when you start. You can start it from seed if money is tight.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Host – Monarchs

Another nice perennial in the garden with a pretty flower. You can cover it with a plastic container in the spring to encourage it to send up shoots for early migrating monarch butterflies.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Milkweeds – Annual
Asclepias curassavica
Host – Monarchs

There are many other milkweed varieties which will accomplish the same thing as the two above, but finding them is a problem. I don’t usually recommend Asclepias syriaca, common milkweed, for the home garden – it tends to become invasive. In a natural setting however, it will be fine. The annual milkweed is a great plant if you can find the seeds or plants.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
Host for Henry’s Elfin.

It’s also a great nectar plant for butterflies in the forest where there aren’t too many other nectar sources.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Purple Prairie clover
Dalea purpurea
Host – Dog Face butterfly

I have found that this a difficult plant to grow. It probably prefers neglect and poor soil conditions – just the opposite of what I usually provide.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Western Sunflower
Helianthus occidentalis
Host – Silvery and Gorgone Checkerspot

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ironweed
Vernonia fasciculata
Host – American Lady

This host listing is a bit questionable, but I have seen it listed in some places. It gets over six feet tall, so it will probably need staking.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

New England Aster
Aster novae-angliae
Host – Pearl Crescent and Silvery Checkerspot

An easy hardy perennial for any garden. It flowers in the fall and is usually covered with butterflies in September. You can propagate it by division or just dig up the new seedlings each spring.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
New Jersey Tea
Ceanothus americanus
Host – Mottled Dusky Wing

Has a small blossom visited by some butterflies.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hydrangea arborescens
Wild Hydrangea
Host – Spring Azure

A good nectar plant and the Spring Azure also uses the unopened flower bud as a host.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Rudbeckia – many varieties
Host – Gorgone Checkerspot & Silvery Checkerspot

There are many beautiful varieties of this species, although I have never found a larva on this plant.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Spicebush
Lindera benzoin
Host – Spicebush butterfly

The spice bush has a pretty yellow blossom in early spring which butterlies will visit. It also makes a nice residential bush instead of the traditional Yew. The larva is truly magnificent and easy to spot on Spicebush as they fold up the leaves to hide inside.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Leave a comment

Filed under Butterfly Gardening, Host Plant, Nectar Plant

August 16, 2012 · 5:22 pm

Nepeta- Walkers Low – Great Nectar Plant

There are very few plants in my garden that will bloom all summer, be pest free and seem to laugh at our St.Louis hot humid summers.

Nepeta – Walkers Low is one such winning plant. The butterflies and bees love it as it continuously blooms over the summer. While it’s lower in size than the standard Nepeta, it can reach to 30 inches high. My one plant which is about two years old is now four feet wide and 15 inches high. I have taken the hedge trimmer to it to keep it’s size in check.It doesn’t seem to mind.

Leave a comment

Filed under Nectar Plant

July 15, 2012 · 9:01 pm

To Deadhead or Not to Deadhead – That is the Question

Deadheading is the process of cutting off the spent blooms of flowers to encourage other blossoms to form and bloom. It’s a time-consuming, almost Zen activity which all good gardeners must do. The trick is to learn which flowers benefit the most from dead-heading and which plants it doesn’t help. Here’s my guide to dead-heading plants in the butterfly garden.

Butterfly Bush – needs constant deadheading to get it to re-bloom. The smaller sizes are easier to deadhead.

Dianthus – perennial – Most dianthus bloom once and that’s it. Deadheading is generally impractical and not done. I cut it back and save the seed.

Echinacea – I dead head some, but leave others for the gold finch to nibble on. I do it more for aesthetics. It will help a little, but at some point later in the season they will stop blooming. Try and keep varieties that do well and attract the butterflies and dig out and pitch the rest. Make sure you save the seed of the great plants and plant in the fall.


Gaillardia or Blanket Flower – This is a vigorous grower and can use a lot of dead-heading.

Globe Amaranth – no deadheading needed.

Lantana – not necessary to deadhead.

New England Aster – normally this blooms in the fall, but this year it bloomed in June. I’m cutting it back to the ground to see if I can add a 2nd blooming – July 15th.

Salvia – perennial – No need to dead-head. When this is finished blooming, cut it to the ground and it will come back and give you a 2nd bloom.

Shasta Daisy – deadheading will help the plant look better, but won’t keep it from blooming forever.

Slender Mountain Mint – this perennial will bloom most of the year with no deadheading needed.

Verbena bonareinsis – this tall verbena is an almost constant bloomer and doesn’t need deadheading.

1 Comment

Filed under Butterfly Gardening, Nectar Plant, Plant Propagation, Pruning

July 10, 2012 · 9:25 pm

Skipper Loving Echinacea

I noticed one particular echinacea which had eleven skippers on it along with a few bumblebees and a wasp of some sort. None of my other echinacea had anywhere near that number. I’m guessing this particular plant is producing lots of nectar to drink. I’ll save the seeds to plant this fall.

Leave a comment

Filed under Nectar Plant

June 17, 2012 · 1:53 pm

Echinacea Turning Green? – Asters Yellow Disease

One of the problems I’ve noted over the last few years is that some of my purple coneflower – Echinacea, is not forming its flowers properly. Instead of the nice purple flowers, the flowers are green, stunted and malformed. I’ve finally figured out the cause and it’s called Aster Yellows Disease.

It’s a disease which is passed from one plant to the next by the leaf-hopper and there is no practical cure. The only thing you can do is dig out the affected plants and get rid of them.

While this disease can also infect other plants, asters, marigold and coreopsis, it doesn’t seem to be infecting those plants in my garden.

One solution I’ve found is to save seed from healthy plants and plant the seed in November. Then you will have new healthy plants next year even if you have to discard diseased plants now.

I’m also testing out cutting off just the diseased flowers and see if that will stop the spread of the disease. Note – it doesn’t seem to work – I end up digginup and disposing of the plant. According to MoBot, do not put this in a compost pile or recycling bag. Put this in the trash so that the disease does not spread.

Here are some more resources about this problem:

http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/help-for-the-home-gardener/advice-tips-resources/pests-and-problems/diseases/viruses/aster-yellows.aspx

http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/ipm.asp?code=138

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aster_yellows

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/39694/aster-yellows

http://crossville-chronicle.com/features/x2051366406/Plateau-Gardening-Watch-for-aster-yellows-disease-in-your-gardens

 

1 Comment

Filed under Disease, Nectar Plant

April 30, 2012 · 10:57 pm

The Clover Butterfly Garden

I recently went to a school with plants to help them install a butterfly garden area. When I arrived I was initially dismayed since the entire area was filled with white clover. As I waited for the teacher and students to appear, butterflies started showing up all over the place.

In 30 minutes I saw: gray hairstreaks, painted ladies, red admiral, buckeye, cab. white, little yellow, orange sulphur and variegated fritillary (also laying eggs on violets)  – all nectaring on the clover.

I decided to put in my plants right in the clover and see what would happen. It’s an experiment which I normally wouldn’t do, but because it would have taken too much work to get rid of all the clover I decided to give it a try.

I wouldn’t normally recommend this, but I’ll check back in a couple of months and see how it’s going.

Leave a comment

Filed under Butterfly, Butterfly Gardening, Nectar Plant, soil

April 5, 2012 · 9:52 pm

Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea

I bought this Hydrangea paniculata ‘Vanilla Strawberry’ today at a local nursery. The nursery had ten available plants, but only one with a branch which was fairly straight. That’s the challenge you may also find if you’re looking to try this variety out and put it into a tree form. I couldn’t find any available online, so I decided to form it myself.

As the plant grows I’ll add more information on this particular variety and my attempt to change it from a bush to a tree.

If you look at the picture below from Park Seed, you’ll see the colors which I’m hoping to get.

vanilla strawberry

June 21st 2012 – see the picture below for what the flowers actually look like when they first come out.

Supposedly the blossoms will turn color over the weeks to come.
Here’s what the flower looks like as of July 12th.

1 Comment

Filed under Host Plant, Nectar Plant

March 22, 2012 · 1:35 pm

Lantana – it’s alive and well in St. Louis

 If you still have lantana in the ground from last year, don’t dig it out and throw it away – it may still be alive.

Because of the warm winter, my Miss Huff and Star Landing lantanas are both coming back. I’ve uncovered them and cut them back and they seem to be doing well. Covering them with grass clippings and leaves may have helped them get through the winter.

Unfortunately, my ham and eggs is way too sensitive to make it through the winter. I could tell when I cut it back how dry and brittle the branches were.

Chapel Hill, a low-growing yellow, still shows no signs of coming back to life, but I’m going to give it a bit more time.

Leave a comment

Filed under Nectar Plant, Plant Propagation, Pruning