h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I've wanted to have a butterfly garden for a long time. This year I finally got around to trying, but I was distracted by the plight of the bees. Well, I figured I should give priority to helping bees, so I went with petunias, coreopsis, black-eyed Susans, and coneflowers. Finally I put a hanging container of superbells [scientific name: Calibrachoa] on my porch railing.

This morning I stood in my doorway watching a butterfly flit from flower to flower in the superbells. Going outside to see the other flowers, I saw other butterflies. The bees are there, too, but now everything has finally falleni nto place. Yay!

Elektra relocated a moth with an 8-inch wingspan yesterday.

Hootooers are awesome environmentalists.

There's a little selfishness on my part, as well. I love the bright colors and beautiful scents. I haven't seen hummingbirds yet, but maybe eventually some will come.

Well done paul! It is no simple task to choose the right sort of flowers to encourage butterflies.

Have you considered planting a -bush (Buddleja davidii)?

YAY Paul! Well done.

Jabs

serene to sit out and watch them all, letting the mind drift awayAND

"Have you considered planting a butterfly-bush (Buddleja davidii)"
[Pierce the ]

I was standing in front of one this morning, wondering if I had a space that would be big enough for it once it was grown. I love the aroma of the plant, but I saw one halfway up Mount Haleakala in Maui about 25 years ago. A bush that size would take up my whole yard.

this is where the art of bonsai comes in

allthough i wonder: will the become really tiny as well

There are cultivars of the Butterfly bush that are not so rampant as the wild sort, and these have deeper purple, or other colours - even white... plus they work best if you keep them rather small by pruning hard in the early spring. Our garden is really devoted to wildlife and we've put in one of these (last year) Its now about four feet tall and three feet across, just coming into flower. Next year I'll prune it to keep it this size.


I think it was called 'Purple Emperor', but there are lots of varieties.

I think I've seen that one in a garden sgop. It's beautiful, but even the size you mention is much too big. Purple coneflowers (which I do have) can be three or four feet high, but, they aren't wide at all. I have them against the side of my house, next to the front walk. They can only afford to be about a foot wide.

Update: This afternoon I was at the garden shop, and I saw a little butterfly bush with dark purple flowers that smelled like blueberry pie. The price was very low, so I bought it and will figure out a permanent place to plant it later. For now, I have it in its pot on display in front of the house.

Hi oh King of the butterflies,

Coongratulations on having those beautiful creatures near you. I refuse to put any flies in your ointment, nut I do not like their next stage when they pupate and then when they emerge go and gobble up all one's plants

There is a butterfly garden at Stratford-on-avon which Keith and it visited when we first cmame to england. It is so incredibly is silent.....I found it quite unnerving.

Have a good weekend,

Christiane.
AR80
Saturday 24th July, 2010 8.30 BST

hehehe, good one, AR80

i was going to call paulh 'lord of the butterflies' but i didn't like the sound of it (for some reason which you can probably guess )

king of the butterflies is much better

congratulations on purchasing said bush, paulh. may butterflies always visit your garden - but never eat your plants

http://www.butterfly-conservation.org/

we have a large'ish butterfly house in copenhagen zoo. there are also frogs and a sloth

it is an amazing, colourful and very peaceful place - or rather would be if it wasn't always crowded

There are a couple of butterfly places in Massachusetts, too. I found a little green worm eating the petals off my black-eyed Susans, which are blooming so profusely that it was hard to notice any damage. There were cutworms in the soil when I planted them, and I think I saw a Japanese beetle later [the adult form of the cut worms]. Again, these plants are growing so vigorously that so far there is little damage. If these beetles get to be a problem, I will try to scrounge up some tansy and plant it nearby.

By coincidence, here in the UK, a 'butterfly census' is about to start.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-10748310

Hi Pierce the pirate

If you went into the butterfly house I wonder if you noticed how silent it was? But as you said there was a frog there - and a sloth - I thought they lived underground - the frog would have been able to croak and so make a noise. !!

The sloth - I do not like them very much. !!


go well

Christiane
Ar80


Saturday 24/July 2010 19.07 BST