I have worked really hard over the last six years to plant natives in my butterfly garden. 

This year has shown me why planting native  is so important – with the extreme drought SWFL has experienced – my plants not only thrived, but multipled in some cases.

The starry rosinweed is a perfect example of a thriving native plant. I added a second one to my space this year, more in direct sunlight. The flowers are stunning and the leaves add a great hue of green to the garden. This plant thrives in hardness zones 9b to 10a. It can spread 1 to 2 feet and grow 2 to 5 feet in size.

This year has shown me why planting native  is so important – with the extreme drought SWFL has experienced – my plants not only thrived, but multipled in some cases.

Once spring hit this year, I spent a lot of time in the garden cutting back plants and making room for additonal walkways to finally finish my designated garden space, as established plants have continued to grow in size, despite the lack of rain, beautifying my space.

Another plant that is thriving are my coontie plants. All of them have new growth, which is incredibly encouraging. This is the host plant for the atala butterfly, a stunning butterfly that has found my garden once.

The coontie is native to Florida and grows well in zones 8a to 11. They spread 3 to 5 feet, and grow 1 to 5 feet in height.

Over the years I have visited other gardens that have had certified wildlife habitat signs, which definitely sparked my interest. So with that thought tucked away, I continued to add more plants to the garden. Although I have some plants that are not native, they have been added for either a host or nectar plant for butterflies, the vast majority are native to my area.

This week I received my National Wildlife Federation certified wildlife habit sign, which I will display proudly.

It’s truly rewarding to plant a variety of butterfly host and nectar plants and watch my space transform into a destination for butterflies, bees, ladybugs and more.