Creating a butterfly garden in Southwest Florida is a great way to add beauty and life to your landscape. To make your butterfly garden more visually appealing, it's important to choose native plants that are adapted to the climate and soil conditions of the region. Native species such as shrubs, milkweed, and coontie provide ideal habitats and food sources for local birds and butterflies. Adding a variety of native flowering plants can also add beautiful bursts of color to your landscape.
To create a focal point in your butterfly garden, consider adding a trellised arch covered with vines of butterfly host plants. Host plants are specific plants in which butterflies lay their eggs and serve as food for butterfly larvae. It's important to choose varieties that are native to your specific region to get the best results in your butterfly garden. South Florida is a paradise for butterfly gardeners, as they can enjoy the luxury of growing butterflies twelve months of the year.
When creating a butterfly garden, it's essential to select plants that are native to the area you live in. The most obvious benefit of butterfly gardening is that it attracts wildlife and brings butterflies and other creatures into the garden for purposes of enjoyment, observation, study and photography. With some planning and effort, you can attract a variety of butterfly species to your garden and enjoy their beauty up close. The bright yellow cloudless sulfur butterfly feeds on senna, a bright yellow plant; painted ladybugs are less demanding and feed on many types of local flora; and Florida's state insect, the long-winged zebra butterfly, feeds on gusts of fire, dew drops and algae. To attract these delicate creatures, your butterfly farm must provide food for both adult butterflies and their caterpillars. A well-planned butterfly garden becomes a small but representative sample of the surrounding habitat and, as such, provides a safe haven for butterflies and other wildlife to gather, seek shelter, acquire food and water, reproduce, and form populations; don't underestimate the importance of having a small garden.
