Standing in the Garden Center...

When I woke up this morning {quite early, I might add, complements of Leo... our Black lab... thumping his tail like a one-dog rhythm band}. I thought of a helpful butterfly gardening hint that I wanted to share.

I usually end up at one of the mega garden centers to buy plants. And when I first started my garden, I would shop, armed with my list of recommended butterfly nectar plants. But because I didn't know what the flowers on my list actually looked like, I would find myself confused by the endless varieties, wondering what to buy. And let's face it, the employees are usually busy and sometimes it's hard to find a knowledgeable person to help.

I used to think that the brighter or prettier the flower, the more butterflies it would attract. But I found, that this just wasn't true.

Then one day, as I was trying to decide, I noticed that there were bees and a few butterflies, hovering around a particular group of plants and it occurred to me that this might be a great way to choose nectar flowers.

That's when I started just standing and watching...and the plants with the most bee & butterfly activity are the ones I would buy!

So, when you're choosing flowers, don't be afraid to just stand back and watch for a moment...and if you see a women standing in the middle of the garden center, watching too, come over and say hello, because it's probably me, deciding on the next nectar flower for my butterfly garden!