Butterfly & Hummingbird Gardening

From March to September, almost any mid-Atlantic garden can be a host to butterflies and hummingbirds. Please use the plant guidelines below to create an attractive, inviting landscape for butterflies and hummingbirds.

Butterflies

Butterflies like masses of color on plants in warm, sunny, wind protected locations. They also like a shallow water source and large, flat areas on which to rest and warm themselves. Attracting butterflies to your garden is easy when you have the right combination of plants. Create a grouping with any of the following plants for your successful butterfly garden.

Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds feed 3-5 times per hour, and they are especially attracted to long, thin, tubular flowers that produce nectar. The fly mainly to brightly colored flowers, with red preferred, they also like yellow, orange, and pink. The more extended the flowering time the better the results.

Note: For detailed information and pictures on the plants listed below please see Rave's Plant Selections

B = Butterflies, H = Hummingbirds

Perennials

  • Achillea - Yarrow - B, H
  • Aconitum - Monkshood H
  • Agastache - Hyssop - H
  • Ajuga - Bugleweed - H
  • Aquilegia - Columbine - H
  • Armeria - Thrift or Seapinks - H
  • Aruncus - Goatsbeard - H
  • Asclepias - Butterfly Weed - B
  • Aster - B, H
  • Calamintha - Calamint - H
  • Centaurea - Cornflower - H
  • Centranthus - Jupiter's Beard - H
  • Ceratostigma - Leadwort - H
  • Chrysanthemum - Daisy - B, H
  • Coreopsis - Tickseed - B, H
  • Crocosmia - Montbretia - H
  • Delphinium - Larkspur - B
  • Dianthus - Pinks - B, H
  • Dicentra - Bleeding Heart - H
  • Digitalis - Foxglove - H
  • Echinacea - Coneflower - B, H
  • Eupatorium - Joe Pye Weed - B, H
  • Gaillardia - Blanket Flower - B, H
  • Geranium - Perennial Geranium - H
  • Heliopsis - Perennial Sunflower
  • Helianthus - Few Leaf Sunflower - H
  • Heliopsis - Perennial Sunflower - B, H
  • Hemerocallis - Daylily - B, H
  • Heuchera - Coral Bells - H
  • Hibiscus - Hardy Hibiscus - B, H
  • Iberis - Candytuft - B, H
  • Lavandula - Lavender - B, H
  • Leucanthemum - Shasta Daisy - H
  • Liatris - Gay Feather - B, H
  • Lilium - Garden Lily - B, H
  • Lobelia - Cardinal Flower - H
  • Lupinus - Lupine - B
  • Monarda - Bee Balm - B, H
  • Myosotis - Forget-Me-Not - B
  • Nepeta - Catmint - B, H
  • Oenothera - Sundrops - H
  • Phlox - Garden Phlox - B, H
  • Rudbeckia - Black-eyed Susan - B, H
  • Salvia - Sage - H
  • Scabiosa - Pincushion Flower - B, H
  • Sedum - Stonecrop - B, H
  • Stokesia - Stokes Aster - H
  • Verbena - H
  • Veronica - Speedwell - H
  • Viola - Violet - H

Shrubs

  • Buddleia - Butterfly Bush - B, H
  • Campsis - H
  • Caryopteris - Blue Mist Shrubs - B, H
  • Clethra - Summersweet - B
  • Lonicera - Honeysuckle - B, H
  • Potentilla - Cinquefoil - B
  • Prunus - Plum - B
  • Rhododendron varieties - B
  • Rose varieties - B
  • Syringa - Lilac - B
  • Viburnum varieties - B
  • Wisteria - B

Trees

  • Cornus - Dogwood - B
  • Salix - Willow - B