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Top Butterfly Nectar Flowers for Lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas
| Note: First 20 Listed are "top" ones |
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| native/alien* |
English Name |
Scientific Name |
Height |
Flower Color |
Bloom Season |
Type Butterflies |
Growing Hints/Other Comments |
| N |
betony mistflower |
Conoclinium betonicifolium |
2' |
blue |
nearly all yr |
most all |
coastal area native, excellent year-round nectar |
| N |
crucita, mistflower |
Chromalaena odorata |
6' |
blue |
fall |
most all |
superb fall nectar, needs space, trim back to 2' Jan/Feb |
| N |
Mexican wild olive, anacahuita |
Cordia boissieri |
10'-20' |
white |
nearly all yr |
most all |
excellent |
| N |
Texas lantana |
Lantana urticoides |
3'-4' |
red, orange & yellow |
nearly all yr |
most all |
proned to fungus/insects, needs pruning |
| N |
white brush |
Aloysia gratissima |
8'-10' |
white |
nearly all yr |
many |
beautiful aromatic flower clusters |
| N |
Mexican buttonbush |
Cephalanthus salicifolius |
8'-18' |
white |
spring-summer |
many |
excellent nectar, heat tolerant, grows in wet soil |
| N |
velvet-leaf lantana |
Lantana velutina |
4-6' |
white |
year-round |
many |
fast growth and hardy |
| alien |
duranta |
Duranta erecta |
6-10' |
blue,white,purple |
spring-fall |
most all |
excellent, not freeze hardy |
| alien |
gregg's mistflower |
Eupatorium greggii |
2' |
Bluish purple |
spring-fall |
queen, soldier |
native to central Texas, reseeds easily |
| N |
frogfruits |
Phyla strigulosa, incisa |
10" |
white |
nearly all yr |
many, mostly small spp. |
excellent ground cover, needs plenty of room |
| N |
taperleaf heliotrope |
Heliotropium angiospermum |
2' |
white |
nearly all yr |
many, mostly small spp. |
excellent, reseeds easily |
| N |
spring mistflower |
Eupatorium azureum |
4' |
blue |
winter-spring |
many |
superb winter nectar when little else is blooming |
| N |
crotons |
Croton humilis, cortez |
1-6' |
cream |
nearly all yr |
hairstreaks, metalmarks |
excellent year-round nectar |
| N |
hairy wedelia, zexmenia |
Wedelia texana = W. hispida |
2' |
yellow |
nearly all yr |
many |
excellent, showy, and drought tolerant |
| N |
white plumbago |
Plumbago scandens |
3 1/2' |
white |
fall |
many |
tolerates shade; skin irritant;groundcover |
| N |
white mistflower |
Fleishmannia incarnata |
climbs to 6' |
white |
nearly all yr |
hairstreaks |
go easy on the watering |
| N |
turk's cap |
Malvaviscus drummondii |
5' |
red |
nearly all yr |
many |
shade tolerant, attracts hummingbirds |
| alien |
tropical (Mexican) milkweed |
Asclepias curassavica |
3'-4' |
red&yellow |
spring-fall |
monarch, queen |
gorgeous flowers, native just south of Valley |
| N |
Mexican trixis |
Trixis inula |
3-4' |
yellow |
nearly all yr |
many |
attractive, unarmed shrub, blooms through most of year |
| N |
bush sunflower |
Simsia calva |
3' |
yellow |
nearly all yr |
many |
excellent nectar and host, showy, and drought tolerant |
| N |
shrubby blue sage |
Salvia ballotiflora |
5' |
bluish purple |
after rain |
many |
attractive ornamental, low water needs, nectar good to fair |
| N |
skeleton leaf daisy |
Viguera stenoloba |
3' |
yellow |
spring-fall |
many |
dense shrub, needs full sun, unarmed, heat tolerant |
| *********** |
TOP 20 |
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| alien |
Mexican flamevine |
Senecio confusum |
climbs 8'+ |
orange |
nearly all yr |
many |
excellent, bright showy flowers |
| N |
scarlet sage |
Salvia coccinea |
3' |
scarlet red |
after rain |
many |
tolerates shade, trim to 4" as needed |
| alien |
West India lantana |
Lantana camara |
4' |
yellow/pink |
spring-fall |
many |
showy, excellent nectar source |
| N |
tube tongue |
Siphonoglossa pilosella |
1' |
white/purple |
after rain |
checkerspots, crescents |
delicate groundcover, easy-care, spreads |
| N |
cowpen daisy |
Verbesina enceloides |
4' |
yellow |
year-round |
many |
tolerates poor soils; reseeding annual |
| N |
heartleaf hibiscus |
Hibiscus martianus |
2' |
red |
nearly all yr |
many |
good nectar and food plant |
| N |
tenaza |
Pithecellobium pallens |
6-20' |
cream |
after rain |
swallowtails |
rapid upright growth; thorny trunk, light shade |
| N |
guajillo |
Acacia berlandieri |
10-15' |
white/cream |
spring |
many |
excellent, armed with recurved prickles |
| N |
anacua |
Ehretia anacua |
20'+ |
white |
spring-fall |
many |
excellent nectar blooms and berries |
| N |
aster, hierba de marrano |
Aster subulatus |
2-4' |
bluish purple |
summer-fall |
many |
annual |
| N |
dakota vervain |
Glandularia bipinnatifida |
10" |
purple |
spring-fall |
many |
beautiful ground cover |
| N |
golden rod |
Solidago spp. |
7' |
yellow |
fall |
many |
not source of allergies |
| N |
horsemint |
Monarda spp. |
1-3' |
white/pink |
spring-fall |
many |
tolerates dry conditions |
| N |
lippia, wild oregano |
Lippia alba,graveolens |
1-2' |
reddish, white |
year-round |
many |
aggressive, spreads |
| N |
sweet stem |
Aloysia macrostachya |
to 12' |
pink |
spring-fall |
many, mostly small spp. |
showy, likes poor well-drained soils |
| N |
climbing milkweed |
Sarchostemma cyanchoides |
6' |
white |
spring-fall |
many |
needs containing |
| N |
Texas thistle |
Cirsium texanum |
3' |
purplish-pink |
spring-summer |
many |
prickly foliage; reseeding annual |
| N |
fiddlewood |
Citharexylum berlandieri |
8'+ |
white |
spring |
many |
thornless shrub, easily gown |
| N |
palafoxia |
Palafoxia |
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pink |
spring-fall |
many |
adult nectar source |
| alien |
rose pavonia |
Pavonia lasiopetaia |
3' |
pink |
spring-fall |
many |
beautiful fresh flowers daily! native of central Texas |
| alien |
pride of Barbados |
Caesalpinia pulcherrima |
10' |
orange, yellow |
summer-fall |
many |
showy, attracts large sulphurs and swallowtails |
| alien |
coral vine |
Antigonon leptopus |
climbs 10"+ |
pink |
spring-fall |
most all |
excellent nectar, aggressive and needs containment |
| alien |
porterweed |
Stachytarpheta spp. |
12'+ |
purple/red |
summer-fall |
many |
excellent nectar, drought-tolerant, self-sows freely |
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Top Caterpillar Food Plants Lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas
| Note: First 10 Listed are "top" ones |
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| Alien |
English Name |
Scientific Name |
Height |
Caterpillars |
Hints/comments |
| N |
blue passionvine |
Passiflora foetida |
vine |
gulf fritillary |
rapidly consumed by caterpillars |
| N |
corky stem passionvine |
Passiflora suberosa |
vine |
gulf fritillary, mexican silverspot |
robust vine that attracts large numbers of caterpillars |
| N |
cowpen daisy |
Verbesina encelioides |
3' |
bordered patch |
very good nectar source |
| N |
turk's cap |
Malvaviscus drummondii |
6' |
turk's-cap white-skipper |
tolerates shade; spreads, takes pruning |
| alien |
tropical (mexican) milkweed |
Asclepias curassavica |
3'-4' |
monarch, queen |
native just south of LRGV, reseeds annually |
| N |
ruellia, wild petunia |
Ruellia nudiflora |
1-2' |
malachite, white peacock |
fair nectar plant |
| N |
Texas torchwood |
Amyris texana |
6' |
giant swallowtail |
plants in the citrus family are excellent foodplants |
| N |
Texas kidneywood |
Eysenhardtia texana |
12' |
southern dogface |
samll tree with beautiful aromatic flower clusters |
| N |
sugar hackberry |
Celtis laevigata |
30-50' |
emperors, snout |
large tree |
| N |
vasey adelia |
Adelia vaseyi |
10' |
Mexican bluewing |
large shrub |
| N |
frogfruits |
Phyla strigulosa, incisa |
10" |
white peacock, |
nearly all year |
| N |
crotons |
Croton humilis, cortez |
1-6' |
tropical,goatweed leafwings |
very good nectar source |
| alien |
guamuchil |
Pithecellobium dulce |
20-30' |
red-bordered pixie, large orange sulphur |
large tree |
| alien |
guava |
Psidium guajava |
6-25' |
guava skipper |
many cultivars |
| N |
heart-leaf hibiscus |
Hibiscus martianus |
3-6' |
mallow-scrub-hairstreak, gray hairsttreak |
short-lived perennial |
| N |
Barbados cherry, manzanita |
Xylosma flexuosa |
8' or less |
white-patched skipper, |
hedge/shrub; attractive red fruit |
| N |
Texas baby bonnets |
Coursetia axillaris |
5-7' |
southern dogface, Funereal Duskywing |
rare ornamental, thornless with dainty pink flowers |
| N |
prairie milkweed |
Asclepias oenotheroides |
1-2' |
monarch and mimics |
fleshy root, tolerates poor soils |
| N |
white plumbago |
Plumbago scandens |
3 1/2' |
marine blue, cassius blue |
tolerates shade; skin irritant;groundcover |
| alien |
flame acanthus |
Anisacanthus wrightii |
3-5' |
crimson patch |
native to Edwards Plateau |
| TOP 20 |
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| N |
common sunflower |
Helianthus annulus |
2' |
bordered patch |
annual |
| N |
saltbush |
Atriplex |
2-4' |
western pygmy blue |
evergreen, silvery foliage makes a good contrast |
| N |
stonecrop |
Sedum texanum |
<6" |
xami hairstreak |
rock gardens, rock walls, clay pots |
| N |
oreja de raton |
Bernradia myricaefolia |
3-8' |
lacey's scrub-hairstreak |
thornless and good landscape plant |
| alien |
dill |
Anethum graveolens |
2' |
black swallowtail |
easy to grow |
| N |
climbing milkweed |
Sarcostemma cynanchoides |
vine |
queen,soldier, monarch |
needs to be contained |
| N |
morning glory vine |
Ipoemoea vines |
12' |
variegated fritillary |
wide choice of vines |
| N |
snapdragon vine |
Maurandya antirhinnifolia |
vine |
buckeye |
delicate beautiful vine |
| N |
mallows |
Abutilon spp |
various |
laviana white-skipper |
good adult nectar source |
| N |
dicleptera |
Dicliptera sexangularis |
2' |
Texan crescent, crimson patch |
Aggressive, will spread and reseed easily |
| N |
balloon vine |
Cardiospermum halicacabum |
10' |
silver-banded hairstreak |
trellises, hurricane fences, blankets prickly pear |
| N |
noseburn |
Tragia glanduligera |
vine |
red rim, common mestra |
stinging delicate vine; adaptable |
| N |
stinging nettle |
Urtica chamaedryoides |
<3' |
yellowish |
stinging hairs; forms colonies; seasonal |
| N |
colima, lime prickly ash |
Xanthoxylum fagara |
>7' |
sickle-winged skipper |
recurved abundant thorns; rampant growth |
| N |
clammy weed |
Polanisia dodecandra |
3' |
great southern white |
annual that re-seeds itself |
| N |
Dutchman's breeches |
Thamnosma texana |
1' |
black swallowtail |
likes full sun, low water requirement |
| N |
pipe vine |
Aristolochia marshii |
vine |
pipevine, polydamus swallowtail |
hardy |
| N |
spiny hackberry, granjeno |
Celtis pallida |
8-10' |
American snout |
armed and lanky growth |
| N |
guayacan |
Guaiacum angustifolium |
10' |
lyside sulphur |
slow growing |
| N |
barreta |
Helietta parviflolia |
6'-12' |
giant swallowtail |
slender evergreen |
| N |
colima, lime prickly ash |
Zanthoxylum fagara |
5-20' |
sickle-winged skipper,ornythion swallowtail |
evergreen heat-tolerant |
| Alien |
citrus spp. |
citrus |
15' |
swallowtails |
many varieties widespread in the Rio Grande Valley |
| N |
retama |
Parkinsonia aculeata |
25-30' |
Clench's greenstreak |
attractive yellow fowers |
| N |
tepeguaje |
Leucaena pulverulenta |
20-30' |
mimosa yellow |
thornless, fast gowing and excellent shade tree |
| N |
Texas ebony |
Pithecelloblum flexicaule |
30" |
white-angled sulphur, large orange |
large tree |
| N |
cenizo |
Leucophyllum frutescens |
8' |
theona checkerspot |
drought and heat tolerant, excellent hedge plant |
| N |
senna |
Cassia alata |
6" |
orange-barred sulphur, |
host for ceraunus blue and angled sulphurs |
| N |
water hyssop |
Bacopa monnieri |
2-4" |
white peacock |
grows in wet soil and ponds |
| N |
pigeonberry |
Rivina humilis |
2-4' |
white/pink |
spreads, red fruit clusters, evergreen |
| alien |
canna |
canna indica |
2' |
braziian skipper |
varied colors and easy to grow |
| both |
grasses |
Poaceae |
various |
skippers and satyrs |
introduced grasses endanger native foodplants |
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