I get so much pleasure from my butterfly bush. Once it begins to bloom, It is always a flutter with butterflies, hummers, moths, and bees. It is rare to come out to the deck and not see something enjoying its nectar.
The reason I get so much pleasure from it is that I can SEE it. Yes, I have it planted right next to the deck. I can stand there and look down and get a very close view. When I sit at the table, I am only 2 - 3 feet away.
A few years ago I had this planted in one of the main garden beds. I did not enjoy it nearly as much because I only saw it when I took a walk in that direction (maybe once or twice a day).
So what's my point? Just give a little thought to where you plant something like a butterfly bush. If you have a deck or a patio that you use often, try to put it near the place you like to sit and relax. If you rarely sit outside, then how about a window that you will be looking through daily? You will get so much added pleasure from it, if you can actually see all of the activity it generates.
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That's a wonderful idea and your garden looks great...as usual. I agree that if you love something so much...why plant it far away from your view. Just plant where you can enjoy it more. Great advise.
ReplyDeleteTaracotta
My two butterfly bushes took a huge hit with our cold winter last year. One has an 8" sprout with a few leaves desperately clinging to life... the other is about 12" tall, with 3 or 4 tiny stalks with leaves.
ReplyDeleteAt best, they get around 48" high here in S/E Michigan. They'd really prefer to be under snow or have me apply protective mulch... but I just don't pamper my plants. Which means occasionally I have years with gaps where the plants are recuperating...
Taracotta, thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteJenn, I don't pamper mine either. I think this one does well because it has protection being planted right against the deck. I have another one which is just like yours -- one sprout about 15 inches high, no bloom yet. I just dug it up two days ago and moved it. Odds are it won't make it, but since it has not bloomed for two years, I have nothing to lose.
If you have been to my blog, you may have seen my huge butterfly bush that I have planted right outside my bay window. My son is standing in front of it in a recent shot. I do think they like a bit of shelter (like next to the house). I have lost a few I had out more in the yard where the wind and weather probably took its toll on them. One was a pretty yellow one. I have the light purple and white now (also next to the house on the other side).
ReplyDeleteGlad you are enjoying your bush so much Zoey!
Just wondering, do you snip off the old blooms? I have, but now that it's later in the season, I probably won't anymore. When do you trim the entire bush back?
ReplyDeleteDianne, yes, I have seen yours -- it is huge! And it bloomed earlier than mine ever has. You have been enjoying yours for about two months now, haven't you? I have never seen a yellow one. I bet I would like that one.
ReplyDeleteYes, I snip them off the old blooms. I don't trim it back until mid-May. At that time I cut it down to about a foot.
Yes, my butterfly bush has been blooming all summer. I don't cut it back as drastically as you do, but the lady at the nursery said that is perfectly fine to do.
ReplyDeleteI must be getting old, couldn't work out what you meant by a butterfly bush - until I looked at the photo again. Dopey me!! Probably confused cause I call them Buddlia's. I have a white, pale purple, dark purple and a yellow. In winter I just cut them down hard - frost doesn't worry them and we don't get snow. Each year they are better than ever. A friend has a yellow and white ones that are 8 feet tall, her neighbours are well over fifteen feet tall and have trunks that are at least a foot across. She doesn't worry about pruning them just lets them go.
ReplyDeleteCalidore, Yes, buddlia is what is it. Trunks a foot across? Holy Moly, I have never seen one so big! Wish I could see a picture of that. It sounds like they are trees in your part of the world.
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