Butterfly bush for Arizona gardens
By Lisa Watters-Lain, Arizona’s Garden Gal
Butterfly bush thrives in Arizona gardens, for good reason. Our abundant mountain sunshine is just what these bloom-loving plants crave. They soak up those rays and produce a profusion of nectar-rich flowers butterflies adore.
Butterfly bushes don’t like to sit on soggy feet, and the natural composition of our mountain soil often provides the proper drainage to keep their roots happy and healthy. While other parts of the country have heavier clay soils, humidity, and long wet cycles, our drier conditions are ideal for growing the perfect butterfly bush.
Finally, while we do have our summer monsoon season, it’s usually followed by plenty of sunny days. This moisture cycle, followed by warmth, is perfect for strong growth and beautiful blooms, making our gardens a haven for butterflies. Prescott offers a little slice of paradise for these lovely plants! Here are the local favorites for butterfly lovers.
- Adonis Blue Butterfly Bush offers lovely clusters of soft, powdery blue flowers that create an enchanting display throughout the summer in your Prescott landscape. While the individual flowers are petite, they appear so abundant that they make a hazy blue effect, truly reminiscent of a field of blue butterflies. Growing to a more compact size, often around three or four feet, it’s ideal for smaller gardens, mixed borders, or large containers on a sunny patio.
- Black Knight Butterfly Bush: Its deep, velvety purple flower spikes stand out beautifully against its silvery leaves, creating a dramatic focal point in your Arizona garden. Blooming all summer, these rich purple wands are irresistible to butterflies and pollinators. Growing to a manageable size, it fits nicely in borders or large pots.
- Empire Blue Butterfly Bush delivers captivating spikes of true blue flowers. This unique and beautiful shade will bring a sense of serenity to your Prescott garden. Reaching a perfect size for borders or as a standalone beauty in a sunny spot ensures a season-long display of those enchanting blue blooms and a garden alive with fluttering friends.
- Lo and Behold Pink Micro Chip Butterfly Bush delivers non-stop clusters of vibrant pink flowers, creating a delightful splash of color and a haven for butterflies. Staying under two feet in height and width, it’s ideal for tucking into small spaces, lining pathways, or adding a cheerful spill to container plantings.
- Nanho Purple Butterfly Bush offers slender, airy panicles of soft lavender-purple flowers that bloom profusely, creating a delicate yet abundant display that butterflies adore. Its more refined and slightly smaller habit, typically reaching four to five feet tall but with a narrower spread, makes it ideal for fitting into mixed borders or smaller garden spaces.
- Petite Snow Butterfly Bush offers elegant, pure white flower spikes that bring a touch of cool sophistication to your garden. Despite its name, the blooms are abundant and create a lovely contrast against its green foliage throughout the summer. This variety is wonderfully compact, typically around two or three feet tall and wide. It is perfect for small gardens, borders, or even containers on your patio.
- Pink Delight Butterfly Bush: Its long, elegant panicles of vibrant pink flowers bloom abundantly throughout the summer, creating a stunning display that draws butterflies and hummingbirds to your Prescott space. This vigorous grower reaches a nice height, perfect for adding structure to borders or standing alone as a lovely specimen.
- Pugster Periwinkle Butterfly Bush offers surprisingly large, vibrant periwinkle-blue flower spikes that bloom non-stop from early summer right through frost. Unlike some larger butterfly bushes, Pugster Periwinkle stays a manageable 2 feet tall and wide, making it perfect for smaller spaces, borders, or even containers on your porch. It’s a little powerhouse of color and pollinator appeal!
Each butterfly bush offers something special, a unique way to bring beauty and life to your garden. Consider your space, your color preferences, and the kind of magic you want to create, and you’re sure to find the perfect butterfly bush to make your garden a haven for these enchanting creatures.
Until next issue, I’ll be helping locals plant better butterfly bush here at Watters Garden Center.
Lisa Watters-Lain can be found throughout the week at Watters Garden Center, 1815 Iron Springs Roadd in Prescott, or contacted through her websites at WattersGardenCenter.com or Top10Plants.com.