What plants to use for a bees and butterflies garden - Chagrin Valley Soap Earthday initiative 2015

http://www.chagrinvalleysoapandsalve.com/blog/ What pants to plant when making a bees a butterfly garden? For EarthDay 2015 we created our own Bee & Butterfly friendly habitat and went to our local green house, Lowes http://www.lowesgreenhouse.com to find exactly what plants to plant. We at Chagrin Valley Soap & Salve http://www.chagrinvalleysoapandsalve.com planted Milkweed, (Swamp & Butterfly) Aster, Bee balm, Salvia, Fennel, Lupine, Joe Pye, Speedwell, Shasta Daisies, Yarrow and St Johns wart flowers, all in a 25 foot by 25 foot square space. These are plants that were right for our weather zone. You can see what zone you live in here http://www.burpee.com/gardening/conte... Make sure to include plants that provide food and shelter for all stages of a butterflies life cycle. Here are some points on the plants listed above and some other bee and butterfly friendly plants that we did not plant in our garden. Agastache Foeniculum (Anise Hyssop) This is a super heat and draught tolerant plant. Deer leave it alone, it blooms for weeks in late summer and butterflies love it. Plus this is a great cut flower. Growing conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil Size: To 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide. Zones 4-10 Aster: (Aster selections) A top plant for the fall garden, aster is a heavy bloomer with colorful flowers in shades of blue, purple, pink, red, and white. Aster does double duty: The blossoms supply nectar for fall butterflies and pearl crescent caterpillars feed on the plants leaves. Heres a hint: Look for new named varieties of asters; they're often more disease resistant and compact. Growing Conditions: Full Sun and moist, well-drained soils. Size: To 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide, depending on type. Zones: 3-8, depending on type. Bee Balm (Monarda) Bee balm flowers are brilliant additions to late summer herb gardens and flower borders. Butterflies, hummingbirds, bees and other nectar-seeking creatures covet the tubular flowers on the plant's rounded flower heads. This flower blooms in early summer to early fall. Growing conditions: Full sun but will tolerate light shade and moist soil. Size: Medium 3-4 Zones: 4-9, depending on type. Butterfly Weed (Milkweed) Grow a butterfly weed or two and you're sure to have monarch butterflies show up. This is if monarchs are native in your area. The adults drink nectar from the plants summertime orange flowers , and the caterpillars eat the plant's leaves. Here's a hint: Add a variety to your grade with other milkweeds, such as annual blood flower or tall swamp milkweed. Name: Asclepias tuberosa. Growing conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil. Size: To 3 feet tall and 1 foot wide. Zones: 4-9 ButterflyWeed: (Swamp milkweed) (Asclepias incarta) This plant forms a tall, upright clump of long green leaves, bearing clusters of cherry-pink flowers with a tiny white center. The flowers have a delightful vanilla fragrance and are a favorite of butterflies. Monarch butterflies lay their eggs specifically on this plant, which larvae use for food. Coreopsis: (Moonbeam) This award winning perennial will reward you and the butterflies with little yellow flowers over rich green, ferny foliage for much of the summer. Here's a hint: Shear the plant back with hedge clippers after a flush of blooms start to fade; it'll spring back and bloom again. Growing conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil. Size: To 18 inches and wide. Zones 3-8 Lupine: Lupines are upright, mound forming wildflowers with fans of green, lance shaped leaves and spikes of brightly colored sweet pea like flowers from June to August, that are favored by hummingbirds and butterflies. Here's a hint: The Lupine plant grows from a long taproot and does not like to be moved. Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained soil. Size: 1 to 5 feet tall, depending on type. Zones: 3-7 Phlox: (Philox paniculata) Phlox bears beautiful clusters of red, pink, lavender, salmon, or white blossoms throughout the summer. Their lovely scent delights our noses as much as their nectar delights hungry butterflies. Here's a hint: Phlox can be troubled by a disease called pwdery mildew. Look for disease-resistant varieties. Growing conditions: full sun and well-drained soil. Size: to 4 feet tall and 1 foot wide Zones: 4-8 Salvia: (May Night) There's a Salvia for every garden: Some are tall, others are short. Some have blue or purple flowers, and others have red, orange, or pink flowers. While you might have trouble picking a salvia, the butterflies won't. They'll reliably flock to it every summer. Growing conditions: Full sun and well drained soil. Size: To 3 feet tall and 1 foot wide. Blooming time: May and June - if cut back may bloom again. Type: Perennial Zones; 4-9 What is most important is to leave this space free from pesticides and weed killers. This will allow the garden to take its natural course and create an environment that bees and butterflies love!