Create your own butterfly garden

You need two different kinds of plants to attract butterflies - nectar plants and larval plants. Nectar plants are plants that butterflies feed on. Larval plants are plants that butterflies lay their eggs on. Once the eggs hatch the caterpillars then eat the plant. Sometimes, when you have a lot of caterpillars and not enough  larval plants they will chow on the plants until there is practically nothing left!

The types of plants you use will depend on the area you live and the types of butterflies you want to attract. For example, to attract the Gulf Fritillary butterfly, I planted Passion Vine (larval) and porter weed (nectar).   By using the right combination of  plants, I was able to attract over 11 species to lay eggs in my garden, including the rare Atala butterfly!