• For more information on the plants below, visit Drosera's Chart of New York City-area Native Plants for the Garden.
•For information on purchasing native plants, see Drosera's Resources page).

Nectar sources for butterflies

The Composite Family (Asteraceae) is arguable the best family for nectar plants. Examples of genera from this family include Aster (formerly), Eupatorium, Coreposis, Helianthus, Liatris, Solidago, and Vernonia. Other families with attractive blooms for butterflies are Parsley family - Apiaceae (Heracleum, Osmorhiza, Zizia), Milkweed family - Asclepidaceae (Asclepias), Pea family - Fabaceae (Baptisia, Desmodium, Lespedeza, Lupinus), Mint family - Lamiaceae (Agastache, Monarda), and Violet family - Violaceae (Viola). Both the plants and butterflies prefer sunny locations.  N.B. Butterfly bush (Buddleja species) can be invasive. Consider instead the natives below.
 
Don't forget food for caterpillars. Such host plants include sedges (Carex spp.), bulrushes (Scirpus spp.), grasses (Panicum spp.), trees (e.g., poplars, birches, oaks, hickories), shrubs (e.g., dogwoods, willows), etc. 

 
• Clasping milkweed (Asclepias amplexicaulis) Grows to 32 in. Flowers pink-purple in June-July. Large, comma-shaped seed pods.
Other native milkweed species: common milkweed (A. syriaca) to 6 ft. flowers lavender & fragrant, swamp milkweed (A. incarnata) to 4 ft. magenta flowers, tolerates wet soils.  
 
• Hoary tick-trefoil (Desmodium canescens) Grows to 4.5 ft., pea-shaped white flowers in July-Aug.
Other native tick-trefoil species: pointed-leaved tick-trefoil (D. glutinosum) to 16 in. pea-shaped pink-purple flowers, round-leaved tick-trefoil (D. rotundifolium) to 5 ft. pea-shaped pink-purple flowers on a trailing stem, velvet-leaved tick-trefoil (D. viridiflorum) to 6 ft. pink pea-shaped flowers, turning green.
 
• Cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) Grows to 10 ft., tiny white flowers in June-July.
Also in the Parsley family: hairy sweet cicely (Osmorhiza claytonii) to 2 ft., flowers white, May-June; try also O. longistyli. Golden alexanders (Zizia aurea) to 32 in. small clusters of yellow flowers in April-June.
 
• Round-headed bush-clover (Lespedeza capitata) Grows to 4 ft. pea-shaped white flowers in Aug.-Sept.
Other native bush-clover species: wandlike bush-clover (L. intermedia) to 30 in. pea-shaped purple flowers; trailing bush-clover (L. procumbens) purplish-pink pea-shaped flowers on a trailing stem to 3 ft. long; creeping bush clover (L. repens) to 3 ft. long, prostrate; pink-purple pea-shaped flowers.
 
• Scarlet bee-balm (Monarda didyma) grows to 2-3 ft. with striking scarlet flowers and minty fragrant foliage. Also attracts hummingbirds. Other native bee-balm species: white bergamot (M. clinopodia) with white to lavender flowers, spotted bee-balm (M. punctata) with grayish-blue to lavender flowers, and wild bergamot (M. fistulosa) with purple-spotted yellow flowers.
 
• Silverrod (Solidago bicolor) grows to 3 ft. The only goldenrod that isn't entirely yellow, individual flowers white and yellow, Aug-Oct.
Other native goldenrod species: gray goldenrod (S. nemoralis), anise-scented goldenrod (S. odora), rough-stemmed goldenrod (S. rugosa).

More nectar sources for butterflies

• Dutchman's pipe (Aristolochia macrophylla) Birthwort family. Grows to 30 ft. Well-behaved twining woody vine grown for large, shady foliage. Critical food source for the caterpillars of the pipevine swallowtail butterfly.

• White turtlehead (Chelone glabra) Figwort family. Grows to 3 ft. Narrow, long leaves; white flowers bloom late summer. Also try pink turtlehead (C. lyonii).

• Rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) Mallow family. Grows to 6 ft. Tropical looking, large, showy white or pink flowers in summer. Intolerant of drought.

• Blue flag iris (Iris versicolor) Iris family. Grows to 3 ft. Sword-shaped, blue-green leaves with showy violet-blue flowers in early summer. Also try I. prismatica.

• Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) Bellflower family. Grows to 4 ft. Inflorescence bears striking scarlet flowers in late summer. Also try L. siphilitica.

• Blue vervain (Verbena hastata) Vervain family. Grows to 5 ft. Elongated leaves; small blue flowers in terminal spikes in summer. Also try V. stricta.