In the middle of the night...

Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night with total clarity of thought? Well, that's exactly what happened to me last night. I was sound asleep and then like a bubble...I felt myself rising to the surface, then "pop", I was awake. And the second I woke up, I realized that with all my moaning about winter & the yucky weather, I had completely forgotten to tell you that if you're starting your butterfly garden from seed this year... it's time to start now!


Many of the plants that you will want to include in your garden, are perennials (they come back each year) and can be started from seed. It just takes a little advance planning, but will save you loads of money! The reason that you need to start now is "stratification". All stratification means, is exposing your seed to a period of cold, before planting. This will help the seed break its dormancy and germinate when the warm weather comes.


So, you have 2 choices, when it comes to stratifying...one is to plant in the fall and let the seeds overwinter and the other is to stratify in your refrigerator for 4-8 weeks before planting. Since winter will be over soon, we're going to use the refrigerator method. We should have just enough time...whew! {I can't believe I almost forgot to tell you about this...sorry}

Ok, here's how I do it. I mix the seeds with equal amounts of damp sand or potting soil...{damp, but not so wet that water will squeeze out of it} Then place the mixture in a sealed plastic bag and store in the refrigerator. The closer to eight weeks, the better, however I've had good luck with four.



Some of the flowers that you may want to start from seed are:

Swamp Milkweed & Butterfly Milkweed (for the Monarchs...)

Purple Coneflowers (nectar plant for all butterflies & host plant for the Silvery Checkerspot Butterfly)

Wild Senna & Partridge Pea (host plants for Sulphur Butterflies)

Purple Passion Flowers (Host plant for Zebra Longwings, Gulf & Variegated Fritillaries)

The other really great thing about all these flowers, is that at the end of the season, you can harvest the seeds! Just wait until fall, let the seed pods dry on the plant and then collect!


I love sharing seeds from my garden with family & friends... it makes a great gift from the heart and helps the butterflies at the same time!


So, you may want to save some money and start planning your butterfly garden now. Go ahead and buy your perennial seeds, put them in the refrigerator and relax knowing that when spring arrives your little gems will be ready to plant and grow!

If you have any problems finding seeds at your local nursery, you can find some of the varieties on the website under "Butterfly Garden Kits".

Happy stratifying!!