Many gardeners will shudder even at the idea of providing food for caterpillars. Too many cabbages, Brussels sprout and kale plants lost to the larval stage of the small and large white butterflies. It’s maybe not too surprising then, if we’re not all rushing to encourage those tubular eating machines into our patches.
But even the most hardened vegetable grower would (probably) consider planting some nectar rich flowers to attract the adult butterflies. They’re a delicate and colourful feature of warmer days in the garden. The hot summer of 2013 helped many British butterfly species to higher population numbers than had been seen for many years. Although the percentage increases in populations might sound impressive – small tortoiseshell numbers were up 200% on 2012, we have to remember that this was relative to populations that had been declining for many years. So, what can we do to help keep butterfly numbers heading in the right direction?
Yes, you guessed it – we need to grow not just lots of beautiful flowers to provide nectar for the butterflies, but also some of the plants that the caterpillars need to feed and grow… and there’s a whole range to choose from that goes way beyond cabbages and kale. For a start there are grasses – if you have space, leave a patch of grass to grow long and lush and you could be feeding the caterpillars of ringlet, meadow brown, gatekeeper and speckled wood butterflies.
If you want something more attractive and flowery than a patch of grass… primroses and cowslips are larval food plants for the Duke of Burgundy. This is a species whose distribution has become much more restricted since coppicing fell out of favour. While you might not get caterpillars, unless you’re lucky enough to live in the right part of the country… you will still get beautiful spring flowers.
Ivy is a really easy plant to grow. It doesn’t even need to take up much space in the garden – it will scramble up a tree, trellis or wall. Holly blue caterpillars will happily munch on ivy, as well as holly, brambles and dogwoods. And in return for a few nibbled leaves, you get to enjoy the lovely blue butterflies fluttering around the garden. Ivy comes into its own as a wildlife plant later in the year too – the late flowers are a brilliant source of nectar for insects still flying at the tail end of the season… there’s even a species of bee that times its life cycle so that it’s active when the ivy is flowering.
Depending on how you look at it, garlic mustard is either a weed or a wildflower. Either way, it is pretty – with small white flowers in late spring. The leaves are edible… no really, try them in a salad, they have a mild garlicky flavour. And if that’s not enough reason to let them grow, they also attract orange tip and green-veined white butterflies into the garden to lay their eggs.
And a final suggestion… nettles. Yes, I know that I keep going on about how wonderful nettles are – edible, full of vitamins and minerals, and a free food… you must all be growing them by now. But there’s more – they also feed the caterpillars of comma, peacock, red admiral and small tortoiseshell butterflies. Just think, a patch of nettles and a buddleja in the garden and you could be providing food for practically the whole life cycle.
Here in New Zealand it’s really common to plant Swan Plant (Asclepius fruiticosa) which is the main source of food for the Monarch butterfly. Kids love watching the caterpillars gobble up all the leaves. So important to encourage butterflies into the garden 🙂
I didn’t realise the Monarch butterfly range was so large… always thought of it as a central and North American species – so I’ve learned something today, thank you!
We have all those plants in our garden – mostly unintentionally. Good article Sarah. I do try and tell my neighbours it’s good for the wildlife to leave nettles etc standing… and it saves on the weeding! 😉
My neighbour gets the same explanation every time he looks over the hedge at all the weeds in my garden… not sure he’s convinced by the excuse though!
We’ve got a ‘secret garden’ at the bottom of of our garden. We’re lucky to have a nice big space. I’ll be exploring the nettles info you give… Very interesting 🙂
Oh, I love the idea of a secret garden… perfect for wildlife and children
I always seem to have garlic mustard around despite careful weeding. And yes I also get orange tip butterflies. I didn’t know you could eat garlic mustard.
Orange tips also seem to love honesty.
We have honesty as well as garlic mustard… a whole range of weeds in fact! Have you seen many orange tips this spring? There hasn’t been a single one in the garden here – wondering if the cold start to the butterfly season last year has had an effect.
I have seen quite a few orange tips this year but they are always too quick for me to get a photo. I have seen a few brimstones too. They always mean spring is here to me.
I will look at nettles in a whole different way now and try to look upon them as friend rather than foe!
You’ll be able to smile each time you see a patch of nettles emerging! There’s even a ‘Be nice to nettles week’ coming up if you want to join in… http://www.nettles.org.uk/
I loved this post, really thought-provoking. It’s something we don’t think of as much as providing food for butterflies, but it’s just as essential. I have a few nettles and grass, and there’s ivy and nettles in our back lane, and I’ve got a buddleja which has appeared from nowhere, as they do, so I’ll be letting it stay.
It’s easy to forget the caterpillars when they’re not as attractive and obvious as the adults. It sounds like you have lots of food for them though.
Thankfully we have lots of the plants you mention already growing on our place. I draw the line at my cabbages though…they’re not havin them!
You’re right – the cabbages are not for sharing! I read somewhere that some people grow nasturtiums near brassicas to tempt the caterpillars away from the crops to be harvested… not sure if this works, would the caterpillars know to eat only the nasturtium leaves?
It’s all very well growing these caterpillar friendly plants, but they still want to help themselves to the full selection in the vegetable garden buffet. We call garlic mustard, Jack-by-the-hedge and use the flowers in salads as well as the leaves.
I haven’t tried eating the flowers, but they’re just about to appear in the garden so I’ll give them a go – thanks!
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I have a neighbour who has commandeered several areas of the gardens here for growing a monoculture of walking stick cabbages. He rarely ‘gardens’, the plants are left to grow, flower and set seed. A lot of the tenants hate it because it looks untidy but it provides lots of food for caterpillars and I’m not above relocating them over to the ‘cabbage patch’ when I find them on my veg! I grow cowslips for the spring flowers and have lots of ‘babies’ this year; your post has given me an idea to plant up a corner with nettles, cowslips and a buddleia that found its way into a pot. Lovely post, and really lovely photos! I’d love to see more than just cabbage whites in the garden!
It sounds like you have a neighbour who’s providing an important service to the community… a home of unwanted caterpillars. I almost wish that I had a neighbour like that!