The following set of butterfly gardening brochures explain the concepts and techniques of butterfly gardening applicable throughout the U.S. and southern Canada. These information-packed brochures provide the information needed to start and expand butterfly gardens.
How to Start a Butterfly Garden
Provides information to get started planning a butterfly garden.
Straight Talk About Butterfly Biology
Introduces you to the biology of butterfly lifecycles.
Straight Talk about Butterfly Population Biology
Explains how butterfly populations operate in nature, to be applied to maintaining butterflies in our habitats, no matter how humble, more effectively.
Managing for Butterflies in Prairie
Explains how to manage prairie to achieve its greatest potential for butterflies.
Straight Talk About Butterfly Habitat Management
Examines what matters to butterflies in habitat management.
Butterflies and Ecosystem Management
Looks at how butterflies fit into ecosystem management.
Successful Butterfly Management Conservation
Provides examples of butterfly species that have been successfully conserved.
Tending a garden that will help to create more butterflies is one of the primary goals of butterfly gardening. To achieve this, it is important to choose plants for your butterfly garden that will provide food for caterpillars. Caterpillars require very specific foods in order to grow and transform into butterflies.
NABA’s Butterfly Garden and Habitat program recommends the use of regionally native plants when creating butterfly gardens. By choosing regionally native plants for any garden, you will be supporting insects and animals that are already in your area, including butterflies and caterpillars.
There are many things to consider when starting a butterfly garden. To help you get started, NABA has created lists native plants commonly used in butterfly gardens. These lists are organized into regional garden guides. Explore the lists and check with a local NABA chapter to learn more about butterfly gardening.
Explore lists of suggested butterfly garden plants by region
Look for a local chapter of North American Butterfly Association
Learn more about the basics of butterfly gardening
Choosing the correct plants for your particular location is the first step to start creating a successful butterfly garden. The lists of plants provided in NABA’s Regional Butterfly Garden Guides have been selected by experienced butterfly gardeners who live and garden in each particular location.
http://nababutterfly.com/regional-butterfly-garden-guides/
When you certify your butterfly garden with NABA’s Butterfly Garden Certification Program you demonstrate your commitment to promoting habitat for butterflies as well as other pollinators.
To join NABA Butterfly Garden Certification Program, you need to create or modify your existing garden to meet the following requirements:
- At least three different native caterpillar food plants must be grown, preferably more than one plant of each selected species
- At least three different native butterfly nectar sources must be grown, preferably more than one plant of each selected species
- The use of pesticides is discouraged. Pesticides can kill butterflies as well as other important pollinators.
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