eNature: Butterfly Gardening

These are some of the common, showy butterflies of this region and the food plant (or plants) appropriate for caterpillars of each species.

Butterfly Species		Caterpillar Plants
	Red-spotted Purple Limenitis arthemis astyanax	Willow, poplar, cherry
	Great Spangled Fritillary Speyeria cybele	Various violets (Viola)
	Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa	Willow, poplar, elm
	Painted Lady Vanessa cardui	Various mallows, thistles
	Common Buckeye Junonia coenia	Plantain (Plantago), various snapdragons
	Clouded Sulphur Colias philodice	Clovers
	Pipevine Swallowtail Battus philenor	Dutchman's Pipe (Aristolochia)
	Giant Swallowtail Papilio cresphontes	Citruses, Hoptree (Ptelea trifoliata), Prickly-ash (Zanthoxylum)
	Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Papilio glaucus	Willow, poplar, alder
	Monarch Danaus plexippus	Milkweeds (Asclepias)

Nectar Plants

These are the best flowers to plant in this region to attract a wide variety of butterfly species. The plants listed here have been shown to be tolerant of the local climate and particularly attractive to the butterflies mentioned above.

White Wild Indigo (native)		Baptisia alba
Blazing Stars (native)		Liatris species
Yarrow (some native)		Achillea millefolium
Purple Coneflower (native)		Echinacea purpurea
Garden Phlox (native)		Phlox paniculata
Lilac		Syringia vulgaris