LEARNING, GROWING, SHARING "By Inviting Butterflies"

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1 LEARNING, GROWING, SHARING "By Inviting Butterflies" Mila Berhane Senior Research Associate Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center or

2 Creating Habitats for Butterflies Identify butterflies in your area Protect and enhance existing habitats Develop new habitats Manage the habitat with minimum impact Educate yourself and others

3 Creating Habitats for Butterflies Create a habitat (garden). The most suitable site must be sunny, sheltered, with abundant flowers, have older trees and of course a suitable water source.

4 Creating Habitats for Butterflies Reduce, limit or eliminate the use of pesticides. Know your beneficials. Use practices such us scouting, handpicking, crushing. And remember: SANITATION!!!!!

5 Choosing A Site Marginal areas, such as hard to mow areas. Fencerows Trail margins Bank of creeks or ditches Community gardens Flower and herb gardens Business and school gardens Green roofs Highways Railroads right of way.

IPM is a 3 step program: 1-pest prevention 2- Monitor pest population 3- Apply pesticides only when absolutely

6 Pest Control If you must control insects: Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an alternative to pesticides alone. IPM is a 3 step program: 1-pest prevention 2- Monitor pest population 3- Apply pesticides only when absolutely necessary When applying pesticides, Use the least toxic product for target pest. Apply them on windless days to avoid drift. Diverse population of beneficial predators will increase, including birds Create buffer zones

7 Pest Control If applying pesticides, apply only when butterflies aren t active or when flowers aren t present. Know how to identify plants that are host to butterflies. When applying insecticides, use the minimum dose. Even organic insecticides are as lethal as conventional insecticides. Rotenone, pyrethrin and spinosad are broad spectrum insecticides

8 Pest Control

9 Habitat Management / Mowing Mowing is a managing activity Decide how, when or where you mow. By raising the height of the mower, flowers will have the chance to bloom: dandelions, violets, clovers. Reconsider to leave some areas unmown Mowing and using herbicides can remove flowering plants to a point that butterflies population will decline.

10 Habitat Management The take home message is that weed management is important. Some weeds are important sources of food, shelter, and nectar for beneficial insects. Tolerating few weeds will go a long way by providing food and nectar for butterflies.

be considered as a useful plant on a different site:

11 All Weeds are not Weeds Weeds are not easily defined: What it might be considered as a weed on a site, it might be considered as a useful plant on a different site: Native, medicinal, wildflower: milkweed, mullein, peppergrass, etc

12 If you can t defeat them, eat them Before you decide to consume them: Properly identify them Know the source Do not pick them from the road, most likely were sprayed with harmful herbicides

13 Land Managers as Leaders Master Gardeners Farmers Teachers Gardeners All must take the lead in education, conservation and protection of all pollinators. Maintaining pollinators is one of the best ways to contribute to a healthy environment and beautiful gardens.

14 Butterfly Host Plants Butterfly Host Plants are important when you create your butterfly garden to provide a site for the butterfly to lay eggs and also food source for the emerging caterpillars

List of Host Plants-Butterflies Asters - Checker spots Bee balm- Sphinx moth Black locust Silver spotted skipper Blazing star-bleeding flower moth Blueberry- striped hairstreak Coneflower-checker

15 List of Host Plants-Butterflies Asters - Checker spots Bee balm- Sphinx moth Black locust Silver spotted skipper Blazing star-bleeding flower moth Blueberry- striped hairstreak Coneflower-checker spot Milkweed- monarch, swallowtails, fritillaries Plums, peach- Eastern tiger swallow tail, spinx moth Spireas-Azures and Columbia silkmoth Willow-Viceroys, Swallowtails, skippers and spinx moths.

16 More Host Plants- Flowers Black eyed Susan Butterfly milkweed Asclepias ssp Brassicaes Coneflowers Hollyhocks Indian paintbrush Mallow Nastursium Partridge pea Ruellia Shasta Daisy Snapdragons Cleomes Sunflowers Tall verbena Violet Dock Sedums

18 More host plants Herbs/grasses Dill Fennel Parsley Hyssop Lovage Rue Water Parsley Ryegrass, Bermuda grass, Fescue. Vines/shrubs Passion flower Pipevine Wisteria spp Spicebush Cassia spp Plum, Cherry, Peach Sassafras Willows

19 Butterfly Nectar Plants You should select a variety of nectarproducing plants (adult butterfly food plants) with the goal of providing flowers in bloom throughout the season

Balm Buddleia Coreopsis Carnation Daylily

20 Butterfly Nectar Plants Annuals Cosmos Marigold Nicotiana Pansy/Viola Petunia Poppies Salvias Snapdragons Sunflower Thistle Vinca Zinnias Perennials Aster Bee Balm Buddleia Coreopsis Carnation Daylily Echinacea Lantana Penta Phlox Red Clover Sedum Shasta Daisy Verbena

21 Butterfly Nectar Plants Herbs/ Vines Passion flowers Mexican Flame Vine Trees Buddelias Magnolia Chaste Tree Dogwood

34 Fall webworms

35 Sphinx Moth

36 Monarch

37 Giant Swallowtail

39 Milkweed Asclepias ssp.

40 Giant Milkweed(Calotropis Gigantea)

41 Fruit Trees And Herbs

43 Greenhand Nursery

44 An Herb Garden

45 A park

46 A community Garden

47 The Tropics

48 A Plant Nursery/Garden

49 A Mall

50 Sustainable Seed Collection

SUGGESTED BUTTERFLY PLANTINGS

SUGGESTED BUTTERFLY PLANTINGS PERENNIALS Asters - late summer to fall Bee Balm -Bergamot - summer through fall Butterfly bush (buddleia) - mid-summer to fall Butterfly weed - summer through fall Coreopsis - all summer Hollyhock - summer