Attracting Butterflies
with Florida’s Native Wildflowers
Landscaping with Florida’s native wildflowers and plants provides refuge for birds, bees and butterflies while creating “habitat highways” through urban settings.
Florida’s butterfly population is imperiled due to loss of native habitat and host plants that are necessary for them to complete the metamorphosis from egg to larva to adult.
By planting wildflowers that provide nectar, pollen and larval food for our native butterflies and moths, we can help fill the void between fragmented natural habitats. Even small native wildflower plots can be stepping stones in a pollinator pathway that help insects reach parks, natural areas and roadside wildflowers.
Planning your garden
Butterflies use a variety of wildflowers, shrubs and trees as host plants. And they need an abundance of nectar for food throughout their life span. Planting Florida native wildflowers will add seasonal beauty to your garden and attract butterflies by providing the vital resources they need.
Follow these simple steps to establish a Florida native butterfly garden:
- Choose a site that receives 4 or more hours of full sun to partial shade.
- Plant flowers of varying heights and flower size and that bloom from March through November.
- Group 3 or more of each flower species for
- visual impact.
- Use both larval host and nectar plants.
- Water to establish.
- Do not use fertilizer and never spray pesticides.
- Where possible, leave plant debris that may contain eggs or chrysalises.
Learn more about Monarchs and milkweed. Find native plant nurseries at www.PlantRealFlorida.org. Purchase seeds at www.FloridaWildflowers.com.
Great wildflowers for butterflies
The following Florida native wildflowers work well in a home landscape and provide nectar and larval hosts for native butterflies and moths.
Swamp milkweed
Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata ) has showy pink flowers that typically bloom in summer and attract many pollinators. It occurs naturally in floodplain swamps, hydric hammocks, wet pine flatwoods and…
Fewflower milkweed
Fewflower milkweed (Asclepias lanceolata) is a delicate wildflower found in swamps and moist to wet pinelands and prairies throughout Florida. Its stunning orange flowers typically bloom late spring through fall.
Swamp milkweed
Swamp milkweed (Asclepias perennis) blooms in late spring through early fall and attracts many pollinators. It is a larval host plant for Monarch, Queen and Soldier butterflies.
Butterflyweed
Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) is a perennial that produces large, showy clusters of bright orange to reddish flowers from spring through fall. It occurs naturally in sandhills, pine flatwoods, and…
Herb-of-grace
Herb-of-grace (Bacopa monnieri) is a creeping, mat-forming perennial that occurs naturally in coastal hammocks and swales, salt marshes, freshwater marshes and swamps, and along river, stream and ditch edges.
White wild indigo
White wild indigo (Baptisia alba) has showy white blooms that attract many pollinators. The plant is a larval host plant for the Wild indigo duskywing and Zarucco duskywing butterflies.
Partridge pea
Partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata) is a larval host for several butterflies, including the Gray hairstreak and Cloudless sulphur. The plant is also used by bees, ants, flies, wasps, birds and…
Mistflower
Mistflower (Conoclinium coelestinum) gives the appearance of a blue fog when blooming en masse. Its flowers are very attractive to pollinators, especially butterflies, moths and long-tongued bees.
Lanceleaf tickseed
Lanceleaf tickseed (Coreopsis lanceolata ) has conspicuously sunny flowers that typically bloom in spring. It attracts butterflies and other pollinators, and its seeds are eaten by birds and small wildlife.
Leavenworth’s tickseed
Leavenworth’s tickseed (Coreopsis leavenworthii) is often used as a component of mixed wildflower and butterfly gardens, and is excellent for sunny roadsides, highway medians and powerline easements.
Oblongleaf twinflower
If you are tired of mowing, watering and fertilizing the lawn, consider replacing your turf grass with Oblongleaf twinflower (Dyschoriste oblongifolia), an easy-to-care-for native groundcover.
Purple coneflower
Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) has striking blooms that attract a variety of butterflies, bees and even hummingbirds. Its seeds are eaten by birds and other wildlife.
Tall elephantsfoot
You’d probably expect an elephant-sized flower from a plant called Tall elephantsfoot (Elephantopus elatus), but it’s not the flower that gives this plant its name.
Interesting Eryngiums
You may know this group of plants as “rattlesnakemasters,” but the Eryngium genus includes seven Florida native species. They are attractive to a variety of pollinators, especially bees and Black…
Button rattlesnakemaster
Button rattlesnakemaster (Eryngium yuccifolium ) is a peculiar perennial wildflower that occurs in flatwoods, sandhills, savannas and marshes throughout Florida. It blooms in late spring through fall.
Baldwin’s eryngo
Baldwin’s eryngo (Eryngium baldwinii) has tiny flowers that are often overlooked. But it can form a large sprawling groundcover, providing a hazy, light blue understory to other wildflowers.
Corn snakeroot
Corn snakeroot (Eryngium aquaticum) typically blooms summer through late fall. Its spiny blue to lavender flowers attract a plethora of pollinators, especially bees.
Coastal mock vervain
Coastal mock vervain (Glandularia maritima) is a state-listed endangered wildflower endemic to Florida’s east coast. It blooms year-round, although the most prolific flowering occurs in spring and summer.
Lakeside sunflower
Lakeside sunflower (Helianthus carnosus) is a perennial wildflower endemic to northeast Florida that inhabits open sunny edges of lakes and marshes. The beautiful bright yellow flowers attract a variety of…
Rayless sunflower
Rayless sunflower (Helianthus radula) is a unique member of the Helianthus genus—its ray florets are almost entirely absent. It blooms spring through fall and attracts a variety of pollinators.
Narrowleaf sunflower
Narrowleaf sunflower (Helianthus angustifolius) is one of Florida’s most common sunflowers. In nature, it forms dense colonies, resulting in spectacular swaths of sunshine yellow when in bloom.
Dune sunflower
Dune (or beach) sunflower (Helianthus debilis) typically flowers in summer, but may bloom year-round. Its bright yellow flowers attract a variety of pollinators, including butterflies, moths and bees.
Buttonsage
Buttonsage (Lantana involucrata) occurs naturally along coastal strands, dunes, hammocks, and pinelands in coastal counties from Pinellas and Brevard south to Monroe and into the Keys.
Pinkscale gayfeather
In fall, Florida’s natural areas and roadsides light up with flares of bright purple from our 17 native Liatris species. Among them, Pinkscale gayfeather (Liatris elegans) is one of the…
Dense gayfeather
Dense gayfeather (Liatris spicata ) has striking spikes of purple flowers that bloom late summer through fall and are excellent attractors of butterflies, bees and other beneficial insects.
Sunshine mimosa
Sunshine mimosa (Mimosa strigillosa) has showy “powderpuff” flowers that bloom spring through summer, attracting mostly bees. The plant is a larval host for the Little sulphur butterfly.
Spotted beebalm
Spotted beebalm (Monarda punctata) is a robust, aromatic wildflower known to attract a huge variety of pollinating insects, including bees, wasps and butterflies. It blooms from early summer through fall.
Purple passionflower
Purple passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) has extraordinarily intricate purple-and-white-fringed flowers. The plant is the larval host plant of several butterflies including the Gulf fritillary and Zebra longwing.
Frogfruit
Frogfruit (Phyla nodiflora) is both a versatile and vital wildflower. This evergreen perennial is low-growing and creeping, often forming dense mats of green foliage.
Softhair coneflower
Softhair coneflower (Rudbeckia mollis) is a robust plant with bright yellow blooms that provide spring and summer color to sandhills, dry open hammocks and roadsides in North and Central Florida
Black-eyed Susan
Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) typically blooms in spring through fall. It is pollinated by a variety of insects, and its seeds are eaten by seed-eating birds.
Grassleaf coneflower
Grassleaf coneflower (Rudbeckia graminifolia) has brick-red solitary flowers that bloom in summer. They are distinctly different than most Rudbeckia species. The plant is endemic to Florida.
Wild petunia
Wild petunia (Ruellia caroliniensis) typically blooms late spring through late summer/early fall, attracting a variety of pollinators. It is the host plant for the White peacock and Common buckeye butterflies.
Tropical sage
Tropical sage (Salvia coccinea) is a versatile perennial wildflower that no pollinator can resist, but it is particularly attractive to bees, large butterflies and hummingbirds.
Helmet skullcap
Helmet skullcap (Scutellaria integrifolia) typically blooms in late spring and summer, attracting a wide range of bees, including leafcutter, cuckoo and bumble bees.
Privet senna
Privet senna (Senna ligustrina ) occurs naturally in hammocks and disturbed areas. Its flowers are mainly bee-pollinated, but the plant is a larval host for the Cloudless sulphur and Sleepy…
Starry rosinweed
Starry rosinweed (Silphium asteriscus) is a robust perennial with showy yellow blooms. It occurs naturally in flatwoods, sandy pinelands and disturbed areas and attracts a variety of pollinators.
Seaside goldenrod
Seaside goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens ) blooms in showy masses on dunes, in swales and brackish marshes, on sandy soils in coastal areas, and occasionally inland throughout the state.
Blue porterweed
Blue porterweed (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis) is an excellent addition to a butterfly garden: It is a host plant for the Tropical buckeye and a nectar source for many other butterfly species.
Walter’s aster
Walter’s aster (Symphyotrichum walteri) in late fall and early winter, providing nectar and pollen to butterflies, bees and other pollinators at a time when floral resources are limited.
Scaleleaf aster
Scaleleaf aster (Symphyotrichum adnatum) is hardly noticeable when not in bloom. But in late fall and early winter, its copious periwinkle blooms make for a showy display.
Georgia aster
Georgia aster (Symphyotrichum georgianum) is a magnet for bees and butterflies. Its flowers are distinguishable from other Symphyotrichum species by their relatively large size and deep violet-colored ray petals.
Eastern silver aster
Eastern silver aster (Symphyotrichum concolor) is a winsome wildflower found in Florida’s pineland habitats. It typically blooms in fall but may bloom in summer and early winter
Rice button aster
Rice button aster (Symphyotrichum dumosum) is a profuse bloomer with small flowers that attract a plethora of pollinators including butterflies and native bees.
Elliott’s aster
Elliott’s aster (Symphyotrichum elliottii) is a perennial wildflower and wonderful plant for attracting butterflies, bees and other pollinators due to its many fragrant blooms.
Climbing aster
Climbing aster (Ampelaster carolinianus) is a robust vine-like shrub that produces many fragrant daisy-like lavender to pinkish blooms. It is an excellent nectar source for many butterflies and bees.
Giant ironweed
Giant ironweed (Vernonia gigantea) is a robust perennial wildflower that blooms in summer and fall, with peak blooming in July. It attracts many pollinators, particularly butterflies.
Common blue violet
Common blue violet (Viola sororia) is aptly named as it is the violet that is most common throughout Florida and is often seen in cultivated lawns.