Have you ever thought about building your own butterfly garden? They’re fun to walk through and it can be relaxing to watch the butterflies fly around.
At the International Flower & Garden Festival in Epcot you can see the Butterflies on the Go garden in Future World. There are up to 10 species of butterflies in the garden.
It sounds pretty easy to create a butterfly garden at your own home. Follow these steps from Disney Parks Blog:
- At your local garden center, find native plants with nectar-producing flowers like butterfly bush and canna lily. Make sure that you have several different species to insure something is always blooming. These plants vary depending on where you live.
- Plant blooms of different colors, as different butterfly species are attracted to different colors.
- Though many butterflies love the sun, some species do like shade, so it’s a plus if you can create a mix of sun and shade in your garden.
- For best results, you’ll also want to provide plants where butterflies can lay their eggs. Most butterflies are species specific when it comes to laying their eggs. Monarch butterflies must have milkweed, Zebra Longwings (the Florida state butterfly) need passion flower, the Cloudless Sulphur lays eggs on Cassia plants, and Pipevine Swallowtails choose, what else? Pipevine!
- Of course, once the eggs hatch, you’ll have caterpillars, which feed on plants. So if you want to have a fully functioning butterfly garden, you’ll need to tolerate some insect damage on your plants. It’s worth it!
- Don’t forget that butterflies also need water. There are several different ways to provide water — even a birdbath can work. They often prefer a puddle on the ground, so consider creating a bare, low spot in the garden to keep wet.
- Most important – never use insecticide, which will harm butterflies!
The Flower and Garden Festival might be ending May 17, but you can keep the fun going at your own house with this fun project!
Thanks for reading!
*Liz*
Source: Disney Parks Blog
