Butterfly bushes are a fantastic addition to any garden, celebrated for their vibrant flowers and ability to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. These sun-loving shrubs are relatively easy to grow, but understanding their specific needs is key to ensuring they thrive and put on a spectacular floral display from summer through fall. This guide provides essential tips and advice on How To Take Care Of A Butterfly Bush, ensuring your garden becomes a haven for pollinators and a source of beauty for you.
Essential Care Tips for Butterfly Bushes
To successfully grow butterfly bushes, several key factors must be considered. These include sunlight, drainage, soil type, pruning, watering, and planting time. By addressing each of these aspects, you can create the ideal environment for your butterfly bush to flourish.
1. Sunlight: Embrace Full Sun
Butterfly bushes are sun worshippers. To maximize blooming and overall health, ensure your butterfly bush receives at least 8 hours of direct sunlight per day. Even in warmer climates, a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight is crucial. Insufficient sunlight can lead to fewer flowers and weaker growth. When choosing a location in your garden, prioritize spots that are bathed in sunshine for most of the day.
2. Drainage: Prioritize Perfect Drainage
One of the most critical aspects of butterfly bush care is ensuring excellent soil drainage. Butterfly bush roots are susceptible to root rot, a condition that develops when the roots sit in waterlogged soil. Poor drainage is a common culprit behind butterfly bush decline, especially after winter. If your butterfly bush doesn’t survive the winter, it’s often due to cold, wet soil rather than freezing temperatures.
3. Soil: Navigating Clay Soil
While butterfly bushes prefer well-drained soil, they can adapt to clay soil with a few adjustments to planting techniques. Clay soil, known for retaining moisture, can pose a drainage challenge for butterfly bushes. Here are tips for growing butterfly bushes successfully in clay soil:
- Avoid Soil Amendment: Resist the urge to amend clay soil with compost, topsoil, or other materials at planting time. Plant directly into the native clay soil. Amending clay soil can sometimes worsen drainage problems, especially for shrubs like butterfly bushes.
- Plant High: Unlike most plants that are planted level with the ground, plant your butterfly bush slightly higher. Dig a shallower hole and position the plant so the base is a bit above ground level. This creates a raised mound that encourages water runoff, preventing water from pooling around the plant’s base.
- Mulch Judiciously: While mulch is beneficial for many plants, use it sparingly around butterfly bushes in clay soil. Mulch can trap too much moisture in clay soil. Mulch garden beds but leave a mulch-free zone around the base of your butterfly bush, ensuring mulch doesn’t touch the stems.
4. Pruning: Spring Pruning is Key
Prune your butterfly bush in the spring, after new growth begins to emerge. Many gardeners mistakenly prune butterfly bushes in the fall as part of garden cleanup. However, fall pruning, particularly in colder regions, can make butterfly bushes more vulnerable to winter damage. Wait until you see green buds on the stems in spring before pruning. Cut back stems just above healthy, visible leaf buds. Butterfly bushes are late to leaf out in spring, so patience is key. Avoid early pruning.
Regular spring pruning is essential for maintaining the desired size and shape of your butterfly bush and encouraging abundant blooms at eye level. Unpruned butterfly bushes can become very tall, with flowers forming high up and out of reach. Even dwarf butterfly bush varieties benefit from spring pruning to maintain their compact form.
5. Patience: Spring Awakening
Butterfly bushes are known to be late to leaf out in spring. Don’t be alarmed if other plants in your garden are already showing vibrant green foliage while your butterfly bush stems remain bare. It’s common for butterfly bushes to be among the last plants to show signs of life in the spring. Wait patiently, and avoid assuming your butterfly bush hasn’t survived the winter too early in the season. Some gardeners recommend waiting until as late as Father’s Day (third Sunday in June) before concluding a butterfly bush hasn’t made it through the winter. Butterfly bushes can surprise you with their resilience and ability to rebound, even if they are slow to emerge in spring.
6. Watering: Avoid Overwatering
Be cautious with watering, especially if you have clay soil. Overwatering is a common mistake in butterfly bush care. If you use an irrigation system, ensure it’s not overwatering your butterfly bush. Signs of overwatering include weak stems, reduced flowering, and dieback (twig or branch death). Allow the soil to dry slightly between waterings. Butterfly bushes are relatively drought-tolerant once established and prefer slightly drier conditions.
7. Planting Time: Spring or Early Summer is Ideal
Avoid planting butterfly bushes in the fall, especially in USDA zones 5 and 6, where winter damage is more likely. Planting in spring or early summer gives butterfly bushes ample time to establish a strong root system before facing the stresses of winter. A well-established root system increases the plant’s winter hardiness and overall resilience. Aim to plant from spring through mid-summer to give your butterfly bush the best start.
Butterfly Bush Varieties to Choose From
Butterfly bushes come in a delightful array of colors, sizes, and growth habits. Exploring different varieties can help you find the perfect butterfly bush to suit your garden design and preferences.
| Lo & Behold® Series: Known for their compact and mounded growth, Lo & Behold® butterfly bushes are excellent for smaller gardens and flower gardens. ‘Purple Haze’ is the largest in this series, while ‘Pink Micro Chip’ is the smallest. ‘Blue Chip Jr.’ is notable for its early blooming. These are ideal for those seeking smaller, less invasive options. |
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| “Miss” Series: “Miss” series butterfly bushes are medium-sized (4-5’ tall) with a refined and elegant appearance. They feature intense flower colors. ‘Miss Molly’ offers blooms closest to red in butterfly bushes, while ‘Miss Pearl’ has pure white flowers that are particularly striking in the evening. These varieties bring sophistication and vibrant color to the garden. |
| Pugster® Series: Pugster® butterfly bushes are short and stocky yet produce full-sized flowers in rich, saturated colors. Their sturdy stems make them suitable for areas prone to winter dieback. Pugster Blue® is particularly popular for its true-blue flower color. These are robust and colorful choices for various garden settings. |
Frequently Asked Questions About Butterfly Bushes (FAQ)
Here are answers to some common questions about butterfly bushes, addressing concerns about invasiveness, butterfly benefits, size, and more.
Is butterfly bush invasive?
Butterfly bush has become invasive in certain regions and is listed as invasive or even prohibited in some states. To address this concern, plant breeders have developed seedless and non-invasive varieties, such as the Lo & Behold® and “Miss” series. These varieties are approved for sale even in states with strict regulations on invasive plants. In some regions, they are marketed as “summer lilac” to emphasize their non-invasive nature and regulatory approval. When selecting a butterfly bush, consider non-invasive varieties, especially if you live in an area where invasiveness is a concern.
Are they the same thing as butterfly weed?
No, butterfly bush and butterfly weed are different plants. Butterfly weed (Asclepias sp.) is a type of milkweed, an herbaceous plant. Butterfly bush (Buddleia sp.) is a woody shrub. Butterfly weed is a crucial host plant for monarch butterfly caterpillars, while butterfly bush is primarily a nectar source for adult butterflies.
Are butterfly bushes bad for butterflies?
Butterfly bushes are not bad for butterflies. They are highly attractive to butterflies due to their nectar-rich flowers, providing an important food source for adult butterflies. However, butterfly bushes do not serve as a food source for butterfly caterpillars. For a truly butterfly-friendly garden, include a variety of plants that provide nectar for adult butterflies and host plants for caterpillars. Native plants are particularly valuable for supporting local butterfly populations. Contact your local extension office for recommendations on native plants suitable for your area.
How big do butterfly bushes get?
Standard butterfly bush varieties can grow to be 5 to 8 feet tall and wide at maturity. Dwarf butterfly bush varieties are smaller, typically reaching 2 to 3 feet in height. Regular spring pruning helps manage the size of butterfly bushes and maintain them at a desired height. Choose a variety and pruning regimen that aligns with your garden space and preferences.
Should you deadhead butterfly bushes?
Deadheading is not necessary for most modern butterfly bush varieties to encourage continuous blooming throughout the summer. These varieties are bred to bloom profusely without deadheading. However, to prevent seed production and potential spread, you can remove spent flower heads (seedheads) in the fall. This is especially recommended if you are growing a variety that may produce viable seeds or if you are concerned about potential invasiveness in your region.
Can the blooms be cut to use in flower arrangements?
Yes, butterfly bush blooms can be used in cut flower arrangements, but their vase life is limited. To maximize their longevity in a vase, cut the stems early in the morning and immediately place them in water. Butterfly bush blooms are best enjoyed in the garden, where they attract butterflies and hummingbirds.
Can you grow butterfly bush in pots?
Yes, butterfly bushes thrive in containers. When growing butterfly bushes in pots, choose a container with ample drainage holes and use a lightweight, fast-draining potting mix. Select a weatherproof container suitable for year-round outdoor conditions. Container gardening allows you to enjoy butterfly bushes even in limited garden spaces, such as patios and balconies.
Learn more in our Shrubs in Containers article
By following these guidelines on how to take care of a butterfly bush, you can cultivate these beautiful, pollinator-attracting shrubs successfully. With their ease of care and stunning floral displays, butterfly bushes are a rewarding addition to any garden, bringing color, life, and the joy of butterflies and hummingbirds to your outdoor space.
