Butterfly Garden Brisbane
My favourite garden visitor of all time: my turquoise butterfly atop a pink zinnia flower
Having butterflies fly into my garden and enjoy my flowers is one of the most stunning (and completely free) luxuries of my life.
Creating a butterfly garden in Brisbane (or anywhere) is a very simple exercise that involves two things: growing flowers and not killing caterpillars!
I know many gardeners out there who get annoyed about caterpillars in their gardens eating all their leaves. I won’t name names. BUT! Caterpillars become…butterflies! If you want butterflies in your garden, you have to be cool with caterpillars.
They are many different flower options that you can grow to create a haven for butterflies to visit, but I have noticed that certain round flowers are most attractive to butterflies. I’ve included a list of 5 great flowers to grow below.
The echinacea, zinnia and marigold that are in my Brisbane butterfly garden (above)
Butterfly Garden Brisbane | 5 Flowers To Plant + When
*I plant all of the flowers below from seed and show how I do that on my Salisbury Grange YouTube.
1. Zinnia: Like a moth to a flame, butterflies always head to the zinnias in my garden first (see above). I plant them in summer.
2. Cosmos: These beauties look like dainty daisies (see below), but they absolutely thrive in hot weather. I plant them in spring.
3. Echinacea: Purple echinacea (see above) is also known as coneflower. I plant them in later summer and they bloom in autumn.
4. Marigolds: The bright orange marigold attract in lots of butterflies (see above). I plant them in summer.
5. Sweet Peas: Are a beautifully fragrant flower that butterflies love. I plant them in autumn.
Cosmos to the left of me, zinnia to the right, here I am in my butterfly garden in inner city Brisbane
A gorgeous orange monarch butterfly on a gorgeous pink zinnia flower
Looking for more information? Check out my 2023 Bee-Friendly Planting Calendar or How I Bring In Bees + Native Bees In Brisbane.