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Create A Butterfly Garden For Your Northern Virginia Landscape

Butterflies are perhaps the most adored flying creature because of their delicate and beautiful wings, their presence will beautify your Arlington, VA home landscape. A butterfly garden is simply a flower garden designed specifically to attract and feed butterflies. The plants include nectar-rich flowers that support the eating habits of butterflies, and the perfect butterfly garden feeds both adult butterflies and larvae by offering a variety of plants, wildflowers and grasses.

Follow these tips to create and maintain your own butterfly garden:

• Understand the butterflies in your particular area. The butterflies in Newington, VA are different than those in Detroit, MI. Knowing the species native to your region can better tailor the plants in your butterfly garden.
• Generally speaking, flowers that need the most sunlight to thrive also attract the most butterflies. Always arrange your butterfly garden in the sunniest portion of your Herndon, VA landscape.
• Short, tubular flowers are preferred by most butterflies. Providing the plants known to be commonly associated with butterflies is the best way to attract them to your butterfly garden.
• Plants several flowers of the same color together in your butterfly garden, as butterflies are attracted to flowers by the color. Planting one of each color may lend well to your color design, but may not do anything for your butterfly garden.
• Provide food for the caterpillars too. Remember, butterflies come from caterpillars so the more caterpillars you feed and breed, the more butterflies you will find in your butterfly garden.
• Butterflies need water too, so include shallow watering areas in your butterfly garden. Most butterflies will drink from moist soil or shallow puddles.
• Give them some shade. Butterflies need to cool down too, so providing shelter away from the sun during the hottest Sterling, VA days will keep them coming back for more.

For more information on planting flowers to attract butterflies and creating your own butterfly garden, contact the landscaping professionals at Lost Creek Landscapes.