You Should Never Plant a Butterfly Bush Again - Natural Lands (2024)

FAQs

You Should Never Plant a Butterfly Bush Again - Natural Lands? ›

Butterfly bush is an invasive plant, meaning it crowds out beneficial plants that have naturally grown in your community for centuries. This species originally from Asia readily takes over space where native North American plants would normally thrive.

Butterfly bushes grow and spread aggressively, often out-competing native plants. This can disrupt local ecosystems and decrease food and habitat availability for beneficial insects and other wildlife.

Butterfly Bush is a problem in the environment in several ways. First, it out-competes native plants, taking up the space they need. Second, because it produces abundant nectar, pollinators often ignore flowers on native plants, depriving them of the pollination they need to reproduce.

It forms thick, shrubby thickets that preclude the development of other native species such as willow. Butterfly bush is considered invasive in many states, as well as England and New Zealand. Some states, like Oregon, have even banned sales of the plant.

Note: Butterfly Bushes have been found to be invasive in some areas and are listed as such on some state invasive plant lists. To avoid this problem, deadhead the flowers religiously, plant Butterfly Bush alternatives that aren't invasive or grow sterile seeded varieties.

Typically, a butterfly bush will live about 10 years. You may find some plants that live longer than that, but it's a rare case. Proper care of a butterfly bush will help it live longer and thrive in your garden.

Native substitutes for Butterfly Bush

For sunny, open garden or landscape plantings, try Sweet Pepperbush, also called Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia) or Virginia Sweetspire (Itea virginica). For wetter soils, try Buttonbush (Cephalanthis occidentalis)—a food source for moths—or New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus).

The scientists chose the butterfly bush (Buddleja davidii) for their experiment because it's a very hardy plant that flowers throughout the year, and mosquitoes are attracted to it.

As you can imagine, the butterfly bush is famous for attracting butterflies, though hummingbirds enjoy its large, fragrant flowers as well. This perennial can grow five to 12 feet tall and spread four to 15 feet. Blossom colors vary, but pink, purple, red and white are the most common.

Butterfly bushes, sometimes called summer lilacs, are recommended for USDA hardiness Zones 5 to 10 and need full sun and fertile, well-drained soil. Dig a hole about twice the diameter of the root ball, and set your plant in the garden no deeper than it was growing in its nursery pot.

Is butterfly bush native or invasive? ›

Buddleja davidii (butterfly bush) is a shrub (family Buddlejaceae) with a cluster of pink to purple flowers and narrow leaves found in the San Francisco Bay area and coastal ranges of California, and is invasive in the Pacific Northwest. It is native to China. It favors riparian and bottomland habitat.

🐶 Butterfly Bush is non-toxic to dogs, but may cause mild GI upset. Symptoms include drooling, vomiting, diarrhea; usually not severe. Prevent ingestion with training, barriers, or offering safe plant alternatives.

Butterfly bushes come in 2 general categories- a “larger” size that grows between 3 to 5 feet in width and 5 to 10 feet in height and the “dwarf” size that grows between 2 to 4 feet in width and 2 to 4 feet in height.

Because butterfly bushes offer copious amounts of nectar, they become extremely attractive to pollinators, distracting them from other native co-flowering species, and reducing the native's reproductive success which eventually also harms the native's populations.

But without regular pruning, butterfly bushes can become sparse, and flowering can diminish, leaving next to nothing for pollinators. So keep pruning to keep the butterflies coming to your garden for years to come!

Butterfly bushes do best when planted in early spring or summer, but when the temperatures are hotter keep them well-watered. An island bed planted with a butterfly bush (or several) will help attract these lovely pollinators. Other places to use them include perennial beds and borders and cottage or wildlife gardens.

When Can You Transplant Butterfly Bushes? Butterfly bushes are quite hardy and can transplant easily. Transplanting a butterfly bush is usually accomplished in either spring or fall. Transplant prior to new growth in spring or once its foliage has died down in the fall.

Butterfly bushes are perennial plants that die back to the ground every winter. They then send out new growth from the roots in the spring. You can prune them either in the late fall or in the early spring before the new growth starts. It is best to prune them back to about 12 inches from the ground.

Butterfly bushes do best in full sun and sandier soil. Because these plants self-seed readily and spread, they can be considered a weed in some regions so you should plant somewhere with ample space.