Butterfly favorite flowers in the June backyard garden 🌺🌻🌼 | Texas Gulf Coast Zone 9b

It is the first week of June, and #butterflies have been in full swing. Here south of Houston along the Texas Gulf Coast we have butterflies, their caterpillars, chrysalises, and eggs throughout the yard. Join me in this video as I go through all the flowers they are feeding from, including the top 3 blooms they currently go to in our yard.
Chapters:
00:00 - 01:07 - Intro
01:08 - 04:33 - Tithonia (Mexican Sunflower)
04:34 - 05:42 - Salvia
05:43 - 07:06 - Porterweed
07:07 - 08:13 - Lantana
08:14 - 09:10 - Stoke's Aster
09:11 - 09:49 - Pentas
09:50 - 11:14 - Butterfly Bush
11:15 - 12:45 - Gregg's Mist Flower
12:46 - 14:46 - Coneflower
14:47 - 15:13 - Verbena
15:14 - 15:57 - Cardinal Climber
15:58 - 16:22 - Hummingbird crossover flowers
16:23 - 16:51 - Pipevine Swallowtail butterfly sunning itself
16:52 - 17:11 - Plants that hummingbirds like too
17:12 - 17:43 - Passion Flower
17:44 - 18:15 - Zinnias
18:16 - 18:45 - Flame Acanthus
18:46 - 19:10 - Butterfly host plants
19:11 - 19:49 - John Fanick Phlox (this is a perennial)
19:50 - 21:34 - Ending with butterfly

[@ldbonbon1983]

Your garden is so beautiful and relaxing. Love the sound of birds 🐦 and love to see the butterflies 🦋 💕. Love plants .learning from you what plants attract butterflies 🦋. Thank you so much.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you so much for your comment! I like going out in to the garden in the early mornings when the birds are singing and active. It is just fun to take a look at everything and see the changes. 😊

[@GrandmaSandy]

Thanks for another great garden video my dear friend you always have the best garden tours

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

That is so nice of you! I really appreciate you taking the time to comment. 🥰

[@joyortiz3242]

Hello neighbor, from Friendswood here. Thanks to your garden tour, I bought plants that attract pollinators. I've had monarchs lay their eggs on the milkweed and we even had caterpillars in an enclosure and see the different phases they go through-cats, chrysalis, and metamorphed into beautiful monarchs. My grandsons sure enjoyed raising monarchs and letting them go.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Hello neighbor! That is absolutely fantastic you have planted for pollinators!!! And having your grandsons see that life cycle is so wonderful! It is important for us to plant for monarchs because we are in their migration corridor. Do you plant host plants for any other butterflies by chance?

[@joyortiz3242]

@@ButterfliesNBirds I have dill but it's not growing too well and I tried to look for fennel but didn't find any. Interestingly, I just found several cats that look like bird poop on all my citrus plants at first I thought it was just poop but looking closer I noticed it had "eyes". I looked it up and I think they're spicebush swallowtails? What do you think?

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

@joyortiz3242 If they are on your citrus and look like bird poop, they are probably giant swallowtails! 😍

[@joyortiz3242]

@@ButterfliesNBirds Oh how awesome! I do have salvias, different ones-love and wishes, red and blue. I have buddleia, and other nectar plants, I'm hoping to get more host plants.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

@joyortiz3242 Down here passion vine grows very well in full sun and is the host plant to the Gulf Fritillary butterfly. The more host plants you have, the more butterflies you will have. Having host plants is the key to having butterflies in your yard. 😊 If you can find some fennel (bronze fennel grows well here) it does a little better than dill because it grows longer and is a perennial. Best wishes for your pollinator garden! It is so wonderful you are planting for pollinators. 🥰

[@spiritsbeyondthestars3493]

The Cardinal Vine

[@analyticalhabitrails9857]

Yes!! Another episode!!!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you for the comment! Do you grow plants for butterflies?

[@jennifergreene8891]

Hello neighbor 👋 Lake Jackson here 😊 everything is looking beautiful! Thank you for sharing all the great info. 🦋 🦋 🦋

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Hello neighbor! Thanks for your comment. 😊 Hope all is well in Lake Jackson. I bet your garden is growing like crazy. May - June is usually fun.

[@Betty-qd8st]

The Mexican sunflower is literally bed and breakfast for bees 😂❤️. .

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

I LOVE that description ... "a bed and breakfast"! 👍😀

[@user-lq5qq1eu2l]

Very nice

[@tammiedunbar6166]

I feel so lucky to have found your channel. I've added some new plants in my pollinators garden. I'm more fortunate to grow the chaste tree than the butterfly bushes. My chaste tree shurbs are blooming this week and I see a lot of bumble bees& honey bees feeding on the blooms. I enjoy your presentation. Thank you for educating other gardeners to plant for the pollinators and birds and various species of life forms that appear in our gardens.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you for your comment! 😊 Sounds like your chaste tree has some wonderful blooms right now!

[@HoustonKeith72]

I’m really new to this so I’m delighted every time I see a butterfly, bee, moth or even a hover fly in my yard. Last weekend I saw a tropical checkered skipper on my calendula. He seemed to love it. Would dance around but then always back to it. It’s my first year with calendula and it’s done well but I think it may be one of those you have to plant in early spring. Kind of like the petunias of my childhood, it seems to be dying back now that summer has kicked in the door. Or maybe it’s completed its cycle of going to seed.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

I am right there with you ... I LOVE watching the wildlife in the yard. It just never gets old for me. 😊 Sounds like calendula did well for you this year!

[@stanleystone49]

My butterfly bush too .

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

👍

[@jillbruce3624]

❣🦋🐝

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

😊

[@griseldaosorio9664]

Your garden is so beautiful 🦋🐦🐞🏡, congratulations 🎉🎉

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Awe, thank you! 😀

[@GlendasTexasGarden]

Right now, I am seeing a lot of Eastern Tiger and Black Swallowtails mostly on my Mimosa Tree, but I also see them on my Vincas, Salvias, Lantanas and Rock Roses. As well as the American Lady, and last week I saw a Banded Hairstreak on my Phlox. But it's so hot and humid here in Southeast Texas so I'm not out there that much to see all the butterflies during the day.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Boy, do I understand that! This Texas heat is a bugger! I have noticed the butterflies will fly early now that it is hot. I try to go out early to enjoy some because I'm like you ... going out during the day is now unpleasant because of the heat.

[@stanleystone49]

My lantanas and my red pentas and the fire bush and porter weed get lots of attention from my butterflies of course the zinnias I just put seeds of the Mexican sun flowers in a large container.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

It sounds like you have wonderful blooms for your butterflies! 😀

[@spiritsbeyondthestars3493]

I grow beautiful butterfly bushes, here in Oklahoma.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Nice! The butterflies really like the blooms. 😊 And I like the fragrance.

[@GlendasTexasGarden]

Very lovely

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

You are so sweet ... thank you for your comment! 😊

[@Pierceb2]

I also grow Stokes Aster in MA in my Butterfly Garden. I find it is mostly ignored because like you observes there are other options blooming they prefer I have like Purple coneflowers, Zinnias, Salvia and Butterfly Bushes. I don’t have much luck with growing Pentas so I gave up on it a few years ago. Porter Weed is not easily available or grown here but I ma try to get a dwarf variety via mail order as it looks very interesting to me. Another good video, thanks‼️

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

That is good to know about your Stokes Aster. Mine is a short variety, and I have a hunch the butterfly prefers to be higher. I see them briefly on the Stokes ... but then fly to the tithonia. If you do order a porterweed, I have observed my dwarf variety gets way less action than my other porterweed. In fact I don't see many things on the dwarf, which is disappointing because I like it in my new garden bed. 😕

[@cajunlady4893]

Thanks for the tour. Very refreshing morning to see all the blooms. Have you ever tried Turks Caps? Butterflies likes going back and forth to my Turks Cap and Coneflower.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

I commented on your other comment about the Turk's Cap. 😂

[@marleneegan-hm7lr]

I have a pugster butterfly bush in the ground and it’s doing great aside from the spider mites it’s got this spring. I had another one years ago which did fine too!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

That is wonderful! I'm glad you have much better luck than I have had with butterfly bushes in the ground. I had a blue pugster that I LOVED, but it drowned the year we had all the rain and standing water for days and days. I was so bummed too. 😞

[@marleneegan-hm7lr]

@@ButterfliesNBirds it’s definitely planted in clay but the spot isn’t boggy and dries out pretty quickly

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

That is good because so many things like the butterfly bush blooms!

[@par4451]

Beautiful garden.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you so much! 😊

[@ernestallen5154]

I've grown Tithonia for 40 years. They are shallow rooted and hollow stemmed which makes them susceptible to wind damage. They have to be staked. Mine grew nine feet the first year, and a thunderstorm flattened them. Been staking them every since. Number one choice for butterflies.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you for your comment! How do you stake your tithonia? I tied mine to 6 ft. bamboo stakes/poles. I am wondering if something else would be better though. They are a number one choice for butterflies in my yard too, with a very close second being porterweed.

[@ernestallen5154]

@@ButterfliesNBirds I use 6 foot wooden stakes they sell at the local Landmark. I also prune them a bit to make them bushier. What ever grows above the stakes, risk snapping off in strong wind.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you for your reply! One more question for you. Do you succession plant tithonia? We have such long growing seasons in Texas and Florida that last year I had some volunteer plants come up and I had blooms until it froze. Now I am thinking I should be planting some more seeds.

[@ernestallen5154]

@@ButterfliesNBirds No, I live in Ohio. I start it in pots outside, and when it get 3 sets of leaves I plant it out. I deadhead flowers. It blooms till Oct or Nov. Depending on first frost. Mine just started blooming.. It's 2 feet tall.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Very nice - and thank you for sharing this! 😊 I think I am going to start my second set in pots. My tithonia have been blooming for 2 months now.

[@JosTXGarden]

Oh my goodness, Crystal!!! Your garden is just exploding with color! Simply gorgeous! Thank you so much for the beautiful tour (and the shout out!!😊😊😊) I’m with you on the butterfly bushes! I have killed SO many! We are officially broken up. I put a duranta in the place I’ve had butterfly bushes before, but it’s not bouncing back quickly from the winter. Hopefully it’ll be big and beautiful in the summer! So sorry about your Tithonia blowing over! Your staking job looks GOOD though! Hooray for all you cats on the fennel!! So fun!! And that Pipevine butterfly! Awesome! My pipevine cats keep getting eaten!😢 I’ve got some new hatchlings though- I may bring them inside if they survived the absolute downpour we got tonight! 2.5” in about and hour! I’ve still got three gulf fritillary cats on my passionvine, but they’re just making do on stems, poor little dudes! Honestly, your garden looks AMAZING! I hope you’re overrun with butterflies! I’ve got more right now than I’ve ever seen!

[@JosTXGarden]

Oh, I see butterflies most on coneflowers!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Absolutely! I love my Stoke's Aster and now am kicking myself for only getting two plants. I so appreciated you showing them to us in your beautiful garden! So many people I know have difficulty growing butterfly bushes down here. They don't like wet feet ... lol ... It's not possible to have dry feet in Houston gardens! 😂

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

For some reason I haven't had much predation of caterpillars yet this year. And my yard is filled with Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies. I have stumbled upon the knowledge that the more of a host plant I have, the more cats I have and then butterflies. I have lots of passion vine, so it never gets eaten to where I even notice it is eaten unless I search. And I have dozens of caterpillars. When I first planted the passion vine, I started with 3 plants, but the caterpillars would eat everything and then the stems. Now they don't make a dent in it because I have so much. 😂

[@nicholasryan5401]

Beautiful garden for the pollinators to enjoy.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Thank you! I really appreciate your comment. 😊

[@juneramirez8580]

My butterfly bush grew so well in a pot. I planted it in the ground, trimmed it and it died! I am in the low desert zone 9b.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Butterfly bushes and I don't have a great relationship. It seems I can only grow them in pots. Thank you for sharing your experience! 😊

[@HoosierDaddy_]

Always fun to go through the garden! Here in Indy (zone6a), the Agastache, Cone Flowers, Salvia, and Zinnias are always butterfly magnets. The Zinnias always have the big swallowtail on them. Swamp Milkweed, Butterfly Weed, and Joe Pye Weed are always loaded with Monarchs. I'm looking forward to my Coral Honeysuckle to get bigger to see what that will bring. I got one because of your video on them!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

That is fantastic! Do you have hummingbirds regularly? They will love your coral honeysuckle! It is also the host plant to the hummingbird moth, which is so fun to see at dawn or dusk. You definitely have the right blooms for the pollinators in your garden! 😍 And of course, having the host plants you mentioned is just icing on the cake!

[@HoosierDaddy_]

@@ButterfliesNBirds * we do have hummingbirds or should I say DID, sadly. I've worked very hard to make my garden large, native (mostly), and am trying to plant host plants like your wonderful garden. I've even got a few neighbors on board. One yard at a time!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

@HoosierDaddy_ That is absolutely fantastic!!! 😀 I have two neighbors who also garden for pollinators and it really does make a difference by having a larger area and more plants that attract them. The butterflies just float amongst our yards. My neighbor next to me keeps telling me she has "run out of canvas". 😂 She considers her plants are like art and she has no more room.

[@HoosierDaddy_]

@@ButterfliesNBirds * I literally just started digging up my lawn and am making nearly all of it a huge garden woth pathways through it. I'll bring back those hummingbirds one way or another, lol!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Oh my goodness, that will look wonderful and magical! 😍 You plant for them and they will come. You will also find that the plants will attract the little bugs/gnats the hummingbirds love to eat. We have found having a diversity of plants is so important too. This will be your "retreat to" area!

[@HoustonKeith72]

Thank you for this! I just love butterflies. One of the most magical of creatures I think.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

I agree with you! Butterflies are just so captivating ... I love watching them. Have you included any butterfly host plants in your garden?

[@HoustonKeith72]

@@ButterfliesNBirds not yet. Does dill count? But I’ve got plans! Putting in a bed this fall for more pollinator plants. Now that it’s so hot, not sure now is the best time to plant in full sun.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Yes, dill counts! It is a host to the Eastern Black Swallowtail butterfly. 😀 I agree with you, putting in a fall bed would be wonderful.

[@wesleyhackney]

I’m kicking myself for not planting Tithonia. Next year I’m going to plant a big area of it. Big news for me is I have a bloom & bunch of bananas forming today on one of my ice cream bananas I’m so excited. It’s early enough in season to let it mature and ripen before cold weather

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

You know, I planted 10 tithonia plants, and I think it might have been a little too much for the area. They are such a butterfly magnet, and I love it. That is wonderful about your bananas! Do they taste better than grocery store bananas? (That was probably a dumb question! 🤣)

[@wesleyhackney]

@@ButterfliesNBirds yes much sweeter

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

😀👍

[@cindyenglish3130]

Just had a thought on the Tithonia. I wonder if you put a tomato cage around them, they would stay better looking longer. A green tomato cage would probably be covered

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

I think that is a great idea! 😀👍

[@marciamunk4907]

What a beautiful and peaceful pollinator garden! Is the Cardinal Climber a perennial? I live in The Woodlands and looking for a climber I can plant around a shepherds hook. It's located in a raised bed that receives full sun (6-8 hours). Many thanks!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

No, the Cardinal Climber is an annual grown from seed. It grows wonderfully down here and will flower profusely in late August when the hummingbirds are migrating through (if you plant it in March/early April).

[@marciamunk4907]

@@ButterfliesNBirds Thank you!

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Your welcome! 😊

[@MrsWashko]

Do you plant the Mexican Sunflowers as seeds? Dig and bury, or just toss? :)

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Hello! Yes, I plant them as seeds. The first year I started them indoors in seed trays (I'm not great at seed starting, but they lived in spite of me). I then planted these starts outdoors. I do deadhead the spent flowers, but some self seeded last fall and I had Tithonia flowers until we froze. This spring I had about 20 plants come up from self seeding, and I saved 10 of them and moved them to the new "central garden bed". So, the self seeded ones were like the "just tossing" method. 😊

[@HoustonKeith72]

Do you plant zinnia from seed or plants?

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

Hi there! I have done both. But mostly from seed. I have planted the giants and also the profusion and Magellan series from seed. I'm not great at indoor seed starting, so I prefer to direct sow outside when it is warm. The problem I have with that is squirrels and cats digging where I have seeds if I haven't protected them.

[@HoustonKeith72]

I’m really new to this so I’m delighted every time I see a butterfly, bee, moth or even a hover fly in my yard. Last weekend I saw a tropical checkered skipper on my calendula. He seemed to love it. Would dance around but then always come back to it. It’s my first year with calendula and it’s done well but I think it may be one of those you have to plant in early spring. Kind of like the petunias of my childhood, it seems to be dying back now that summer has kicked in the door. Or maybe it’s completed its cycle of going to seed.

[@ButterfliesNBirds]

I think KZbin double posted your comment. (I commented on the other post.) 👍