Garden

[okaywitheasypay]

does anyone have butterfly bushes. I ordered some from QVC last year and they were wonderful. Any owners? I did not trim them back, it seems like I read that you were not supposed to . Should I now? When should I fertilize?I am in IN.

I also purchased a thornless rose. It looks as though it survived the winter and is greening.(cross my fingers and knock on my head).

[We rescue cats]

I prune my butterfly bush back every spring, as soon as I see new growth starting to emerge.

[jackthebear]

you can cut butterfly bushes  almost to the ground, they are very, very hardy

[Desertdi]

[CarolinaGirl88]

I've had a butterfly bush for many years. I do prune it somewhat, but not overly so. It's quite fragrant and the butterflies really do love it! It's very faithful; always blooms.

[Largoman]

Yes, butterfly bushes are invasive plants. While they may look like a good choice for attracting butterflies, they can quickly spread and choke out native plant life.

Their flowers do offer nectar, but butterfly bushes aren’t host plants for North American butterflies. Think of them like soda for butterflies—an occasional sweet treat, but they don’t provide the essential food or habitat butterflies need to survive and reproduce.

Remove butterfly bushes and replace them with native host plants (a well-known one is milkweed), which help butterfly populations thrive. Scroll on to find out why butterfly bush is a problem.

***edited to remove links

[Skyegirl21]

I have a lot of them. I love them from the Q that have done well. They will continue to grow somewhat so prune them if you want them smaller-  

All the little flowers ( that make up the bloom) after they fade may drop and germinate, and create new plants so if you see them, pull them out if you don't want new plants.  Or I often cut off the faded flowers-
GOOD NEWS, I read the monarch numbers have increased dramatically this year! I hope! In recent years, there have been very few butterflies! HAPPY APRIL!  

[haddon9]

We have a couple of butterfly bushes hat are just a few years old.  They are still on the small side and I want them to fill in where they are located.  No pruing yet.  They are pretty!

[Carolina925]

I just started in the last couple of years paying attention to non-native plants and the damage they can do to our insect populations. I was really surprised this morning to see that they're being offered by Cottage Farms. They may be pretty to us but I'm a save the planet tree hugger!

[Icegoddess]

I have some dwarf BB's.  They usually die back to the ground in winter here.  I just cut back the dead branches back as far as possible when they start emerging in spring.  

I also have Asclepias Tuberosa (Butterfly Weed) and Swamp Milkweed and Asclepias Incarnata (Swamp Milkweed) for the monarchs.  I've only ever seen the caterpillars on the Swamp Milkweed.