Well it’s official. I am obsessed with my garden at the moment. Here in Texas there is a very small window in the spring to actually enjoy the outdoors. Now is that time. The mornings are cooler and the days are pleasantly hot. Soon it will be a long endless summer with heat that stifles and uncomfortable humidity.

Being on lockdown creates its own challenges. I am very very fortunate that we live in a house with a back yard that has barely been landscaped except for a thirsty lawn and three Live Oak trees.

I have been an organic gardener for thirty years or more and it is my mission to never use any poisons or anything that can be harmful to wildlife.

I love to plant things that have food for butterflies, birds and bees means that I love native plants.

I have to be clear that for butterflies you have to sometimes sacrifice your plants to the caterpillars. I once planted a passion vine that was eaten till there was almost nothing left.

Best picks for butterflies

Monarch butterflies can only survive if the caterpillars have Milkweed to feast on. The leaves of the Milkweed are the only food that the caterpillars can eat. Milkweed flowers also have beneficial nectar that butterflies, bees and other pollinators like. Monarch butterflies need milkweed to lay their eggs.

Below are pictures of Common Milkweed and Butterfly weed

Other plants that butterflies love are  Joe-Pye weed, Yellow coneflowers and any other bright asters.

Full butterfly plant list stolen from Farmers Almanac

Where I live in Texas we have the Gulf Coast Fritillary Butterfly which loves Butterfly Bush, Lantana, Asters and Verbena amongst many. Its host plant is the Passion Vine and Passion Flower. It can eat those down to nothing!

A favorite not so common plant is the Orange Scepter Butterfly Bush. It blooms almost all year round where we live. It is a butterfly and hummingbird magnet.

Plants that attract birds

There are so many to mention but here are just a few:

Beautyberry

I love American Beautyberries (Calicarpa americana). These plants are native to certain parts of the United States. Also sometimes called french mulberry. The berries feed about 40 species of songbirds and many other critters. It is not really picky about where it lives. I have grown these in the shade very successfully.

Buttonbush

(Cephalanthus occidentalis) Another native favorite of mine. It blooms in the Spring and feeds butterflies, birds and bees. Grows in sun to part shade

The spring starts with a small 1 inch round pink of white flowers followed by a reddish fruit and then a seed that birds love

Purple Coneflower (Echinacea)

Purple Coneflowers are also native plants and attracts bees and other pollinators. Their seeds feed birds in the fall. These beauties can grow in sun or part shade.

Sunflowers (Helianthus )

Sunflowers provide food for many birds. Birds often use the sunflower seeds to fuel their long migrations. Who doesn’t love the sight of a beautiful bright yellow sunflower!

Milkweed

There are species native to all areas of the United States.

Yes Milkweed so loved by Monarch butterflies provides food for birds too!. There are many native varieties around.

Elderberry (Sambucus)

Elderberry has been used for medicines and dyes for centuries. It is a showy garden plant. Native to almost everywhere in the United States except for the Gulf Coast.

Plants that attract bees

Plants that attract bees Bees are vital to your garden’s ecosystem. They pollinate all plants for growing for beauty or for our food

Bees are attracted to colorful, fragrant flowers. Bright colors and the scent of perfumed flowers tell bees that there’s food nearby.

Bee balm

These beauties bloom from August until they die back in the winter. They are showy and so beautiful. A favorite of mine.

Purple Coneflower (Echinacea)

Also mentioned above, this plant is loved by birds too.

Lavender

No surprises here, since the scent is so wonderful and strong

Lupine

In Texas we have the Lupinus texensis (Fabaceae). It is native to Texas and grows as a wildflower in the spring.

Liatris

Stalk-like flowers that grow in a variety of colors from white to deep purple.

Bloom: Late summer

This plants is loved by Monarch butterflies too

Salvia

It seems bees like all kinds of Salvia. This morning I was watching a bee on my Salvia Guaranitica black and blue. Texas has many native Salvias of which one is the Salvia Greggi. It comes in many colors.

Porterweed

Another favorite of mine. Loved by butterflies, hummingbirds and bees. Stalk like flowers that bloom only for a day. Can also be grown in part shade.

Black-eyed susans (Rudbeckia Hirta):

Sun loving native plants that attract all kinds of insects and bloom in the spring and the fall.

Lastly, I always have a water fountain or a bird bath in my garden. Whatever you choose to plant in your garden, think about the critters you might feed on their way.

Starting next week my blogs on Thursdays will be as a guest participant on the One Room Challenge. I am redoing my back porch and part of my back yard.

Other outdoor related blogs:

You may also like to read my list of shade garden plants or how to bring some color to your back porch