A big, glossy seed catalogue from one of the big companies came thumping through my letter box this week, a timely reminder that the sowing season is only just around the corner.

On the one hand, seeing all the bright, colourful photos of flowers in full bloom is an exciting reminder of the glories of the season to come. But it was with my usual horror that I noted the plants that they were claiming were good for butterflies.

Of over 500 seed varieties on offer, this particular company claimed that 89 are "attractive to butterflies". I just don't know where they get their information from!

The plants they picked out on which I have never once seen a butterfly nectaring in all the years I've been researching this include Convolvulus major cultivars, Hollyhock, Ipomoea, Phacelia, Poached-egg Plant, various double sunflowers, and various Sweet Pea cultivars.

Now it is possible that very very occasionally a butterfly might land on one of these flowers and give it a try, but these are not flowers that they will habitually use.

And Schizanthus pinnatus is commonly known as the butterfly flower because they look like butterflies, not because they attract them!

Butterflies really are very restricted in terms of which flowers are the right shape for them to nectar on. So of all the flower seeds on offer in the catalogue I received, I personally would only recommend Lavender, Verbena bonariensis, and three flowers that they DON'T mark as being good for butterflies: Aubrieta, Coreopsis and single Dahlias (the photo I took last year of Small Tortoiseshell on Dahlia 'Dannevirke').

There are more flowers of course that are good for butterflies, such as Echinacea, Buddleia, Marjoram, scabiouses and knapweeds, heathers, Sedum spectabile, and Asters. But it just shows how careful you need to be when tempted by the catalogue blurbs.

  • Hi Ratty

    Given my experience and observation of Alstroemerias, I'd happily bet that it is total fabrication. And I'm not a betting man!

  • A this years T&M plant calalogue Has 'New Alostroemeria Butterfly Hybrids' "Your plants will be smothered in butterflies as soon as the pretty purple blooms open". I am tempted to get it but at £11.99 and in light of your article I think I'll wait and see if anyone else has any luck with it.   I haven't seen butterflies on ordinary Alostroemerias. With the decline in butterflies its hard to imagine them reaching 'smothering' numbers on any plant!