25 Plants to Attract Butterflies in DFW

DFW summers are hot and dry. Outdoor watering in the summertime often contributes to 40%+ of your water bill. In the 25+ years that Soils Alive has been working with DFW homeowners, we've advised many of our clients to update their landscaping with native plants. Native plants are well-adapted to our DFW weather and our heavy clay soils. Plus, when you use native plants, you'll also attract hummingbirds and butterflies.

Some of the plants we recommend are native to DFW (or other parts of Texas), while others are not from Texas but are very well adapted to our hot, dry summer conditions. If you're redesigning your entire landscape, we highly recommend Nativo Gardens for their landscape design experience with natives. If you want to start small and put in a 150 square foot wildlife garden, we sell trays of 20, 4" plants through Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs) in DFW to help them raise money for their schools and you get access to high-quality perennial plants. Our trays of 20 plants provide you with 8 or more different types in a random mix, based on what's in stock and of highest quality. Here's the 25 plants we highly recommend for DFW homeowners.

1. Flame Acanthus

Flame acanthus (Anisacanthus quadrifidus, on iNaturalist) is a bright-red flowering shrub that blooms summer through fall. It is a hummingbird magnet. The plant gets 5 feet tall and 3.5 feet wide. It is a host plant for the Texan Crescent (as well as the Crimson Patch, though rare in DFW), so be sure and avoid spraying pesticides that can harm the caterpillars. After the fall frost (around November 20), trim back the dead stems. It comes back from the ground in spring. Every year it will come back a bit stronger and larger. In its third year it is truly a remarkable plant, and more and more DFW municipalities are putting this plant in highway medians. To encourage bushier growth, it does well when you pinch back the growing tips in spring. After its first flush of blooms, give it another trim to encourage another wave of flowers.

2. Gray Goldenrod

Gray Goldenrod (Solidago nemoralis, on iNaturalist) is one of many plants in the goldenrod family. It's a favorite of bees, butterflies, moths, and beetles who rely on its nectar and pollen. Several moths will lay their eggs on the plant for their caterpillars to feed on. We recommend this type of goldenrod because it's less aggressive in spreading in a garden setting and is a bit shorter, at only 3 feet tall, than Tall Goldenrod (S. altissima). The fall yellow blooms are a butterfly favorite, including the Monarch flying south in fall (check out North Carolina Extension Gardener's video here). Keep in mind that it's Ragweed that causes allergies, not goldenrod. This plant needs about 5 square feet in the garden as it will often send up new baby shoots nearby in the spring that can be moved.

3. Mexican Oregano

Mexican oregano (Poliomintha longiflora) is a highly drought-tolerant plant, recommended by Texas SmartScape to reduce water use. It is a native plant of Mexico, and blooms July-October with lavender flowers that attract hummingbirds and sphinx moths. The leaves can be used as a culinary herb, and to make tea. The plant can get quite large (4 feet tall by 3 feet wide), but as Pam Penick suggests, trimming it back can keep it a more manageable 2 feet tall by 2 feet wide.

4. Copper Canyon Daisy

Copper Canyon Daisy (Tagetes lemmonii, on iNaturalist) has very aromatic leaves and blooms yellow in late fall. It is highly drought-tolerant. In fact, it prefers drier soil. If you have heavy clay, buy a bag of sand or crushed granite and mix into the soil. Plant somewhere that water will pool (not a low spot). Mound the soil up a bit, then plant into the mound, so rainwater washes away from the plant stem, to avoid water pooling around the roots. It benefits from tip-pruning in spring for a bushier, more compact appearance. Can get 6 feet tall (and wide) but with pruning it will stay 3-4 feet tall, 3 feet wide. TBG Partners suggests stem cuttings for propagation, or dividing the root clump.

5. Purple coneflower

Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea, on iNaturalist) is a wonderful plant to attract butterflies that are drawn to the nectar of these long-blooming flowers (April to September). It is a host plant for three butterflies: the Silvery Checkerspot, the Gorgone Checkerspot, and the Bordered Patch. It gets about 3 feet tall by 2.5 feet wide, and will slowly spread into a larger clump of flowers. Every few years, you can dig up the plant and divide the root ball into 4, allowing you to expand this butterfly magnet. Collect the seeds and scatter them in the fall/winter in other areas where you want more of this native plant to grow in the spring. Or scatter seed directly into soil-filled pots around December-January, and then plant them out in the garden in late spring (May) as small plants that can be divided up. Plants bloom in the second year after germination. Birds will eat the seeds in the fall and winter.

6. Gregg's Mistflower

Gregg's mistflower (Conoclinium greggii, on iNaturalist) is a must-have for a DFW garden. Probably one of the most prolific bloomers of all the native plants, Gregg's Mistflower has one of the longest bloom times, from March to November. It also grows exceptionally well in heavy clay soil. Its flowers attract the Queen butterfly, and in the fall when the Monarchs migrate south heading to Mexico, this plant is covered with Monarch butterflies. It benefits from being tip-pruned in the spring, to encourage bushier growth. After it has bloomed, cut it back by 50% to encourage sturdier growth from the base of the plant, and another wave of blooms. It grows 3 feet tall, and it needs 10 square feet in your garden. It grows rapidly via rhizomes into nearby soil, allowing you to divide the plant each spring, yielding very often 10 new plants from 1. This plant's scientific classification was updated; it was previously known as Cococlinium dissectum or Eupatorium greggii.

7. Fall Obedient Plant

Fall obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana, on iNaturalist) will attract hummingbirds and butterflies to your garden. It blooms in late summer through fall. It grows about 4-5 feet tall and has a sturdy, upright growth habit. Like Gregg's Mistflower, it will send out rhizomes to give you 5-10 new plants each year if properly cared for. Be sure and give it about 10 square feet in the garden to take advantage of these free new plants. Give it some extra water to encourage the best growth, though it is very drought-tolerant too. With proper care, one plant can become 100 after 2-3 years. Dig up a few and share them with your neighbors. A truly remarkable, prolific native plant that every DFW garden should have.

8. Yarrow

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium, on iNaturalist) comes in several colors, but the white variety is the native type. The others are pretty, too, but the white one in particular is going to attract beneficial insects to your landscape. It blooms spring through fall, and provides flowers for a wide variety of insects, including lacewings which are beneficial insects that will eat aphids (eliminating the need to spray pesticides). In fact, because of the beneficial insects that use Yarrow, you'll want to avoid spraying anything that will harm these beneficial insects. It is a host plant for the American Painted Lady butterfly. It grows 3 feet tall, and it needs 5 square feet. It sends out rhizomes to create new plants you can dig up and move to expand your garden.

9. "Dallas Red" Lantana

Lantanas come in a variety of colors, including red, gold, white, and purple. Many of the lantanas sold at Big Box stores are not native. Some of them will not even survive the winter! "Dallas Red" Lantana, while not native, does come back each year. (Texas Master Gardener says 2 feet tall, but it is more common at 3 feet tall). It offers a very long bloom time (April-November) offering butterflies a tremendous amount of blooms. Dallas Red Lantana can get very large, but pruning it back can keep it a bit smaller. You can keep it as low as 2 feet, but you'll have to trim it back. An average plant gets 3 feet wide, but if you have the space you can let it grow even to 4 feet wide. Stem cuttings can be taken to propagate more free plants.

10. "New Gold" Lantana

Another great lantana choice for a DFW garden, New Gold offers bright yellow blooms and is a great companion to Dallas Red. Although not native, it is very drought-tolerant and great at attracting butterflies. With pruning, it gets 2 feet tall by 3 feet wide so a little smaller than Dallas Red but a nice companion in the front of a garden bed with the red behind it.

11. Rock Rose

Rock rose (Pavonia lasiopetala, on iNaturalist) is a highly drought-tolerant native, growing 3-4 feet tall, and a good hummingbird attractor. It received recognition in 2021 by Texas A&M AgriLife Research as a "Texas Superstar" plant for thriving across the state. It will need 5 square feet in the garden and does not produce more plants via rhizome, so for a fuller look, you may want to put in 3-5 plants together. You can trim it back to about 8" tall in spring for a bushier appearance. It blooms from April to November. This plant will bloom and set seeds, which will fall close by and sprout....giving you more free plants.

12. "Walker's Low" Catmint

Walker's Low Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii), not native to DFW, does tremendously well in our hot, dry summers. It is a Texas SmartScape recommended plant. It blooms from spring through fall attracting many pollinating insects, and being only about 2 feet tall does well along walkways and borders. Cut it back after blooms are spent to encourage another flush of flowers. It will need 5 square feet. One plant is all you need, because you can very easily take stem cuttings and root them in water to grow more plants.

13. Mexican honeysuckle

Mexican honeysuckle (Justicia spicigera, on iNaturalist) is a native of Mexico and Central America. This sun and heat-loving plant attracts hummingbirds with blooms from March to November. It will lose its leaves after the fall frost (especially if below 25 F), and come back from the root in the spring. Pruning in spring will encourage a bushier appearance and more blooms. The Texan crescent butterfly (Anthanassa texana) will lay eggs for its caterpillars to feed on this plant, since the butterfly's range is from Guatemala, Mexico, and even here in DFW. With some pruning, it will get 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide. It is quite easy to propagate this plant from stem cuttings, for more free plants. For a complete growing guide, visit Gardeners Path.

14. Black-Eyed Susan

The Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta, on iNaturalist) is a favorite native plant loved and known by many gardeners, probably one of the most iconic natives that grow well in DFW. Growing 3 feet tall, it does best in a mass planting of 5-7, as each plant only needs 1-2 square feet. Collect seeds from this plant (or buy them) and scatter them where you want more plants to grow. Two butterfly species will lay eggs on this plant for their caterpillars to eat: the Gorgone Checkerspot and Bordered Patch. For this reason try to avoid using any pesticides that may be carried by the wind and impact the eggs and caterpillars on this plant.

15. Autumn Sage (White)

Autumn sage (Salvia greggii) is a must-have for every DFW gardener. There are several different colors. The white one is stunning and adds vibrant color that can be seen in the early morning and after sunset, when darker colors have all faded. The 2-3 foot tall plant is very shrubby and drought-tolerant. It blooms from March to November, and it benefits from being trimmed back once done blooming to encourage another flush of flowers. If you have space, it can get as large as 10 square feet (3' wide), or you can trim it to 5 square feet (2' wide). Branches can easily snap from wind damage, so pruning it back in spring and fall is beneficial to protect the plant from wind damage. Older stems will thicken with time, giving the plant a strong structure to support new, fresh growth that produce the flowers you want. Let some of the stems grow along the ground, and cover them with a bit of soil and a rock to keep the stems in contact with soil, and a month later it will have grown roots. Be sure and keep the soil moist with some extra water. You can cut the stem and now you have another plant! Or start with a fresh stem cutting.

16. Pink Gaura

Gaura (Oenothera lindheimeri, on iNaturalist) gives a sense of motion to a garden, with its tall slender pink flower spikes dancing in the wind. There are white and pink varieties. We offer the pink. Getting 4-5 feet tall, it offers pink blooms from April-October. Its leaves turn a beautiful red and purple in the fall. It requires about 5 square feet of space. This plant is also quite easy to propagate for more free plants in your garden.

17. Indigo Spires Salvia

Indigo Spires salvia grows 4 feet tall, and can get quite large (3 feet wide), so it will need 10 square feet in the garden. It has 12" tall purple flower spikes, and it blooms from spring all the way through fall. Although not native to DFW, it is very adapted to our hot summers. It is a hybrid cross of 2 species of salvia (S. longispicata and S. farinacea), discovered in 1979. Propagate with cuttings.

18. Pink Skullcap

Pink skullcap (Scutellaria suffrutescens) is a low-growing, 12" tall plant that blooms from May to October. It benefits from being trimmed to maintain a bushy, rounded appearance. After blooming, trim it back to encourage a new wave of blooms. The small flowers are well-loved by bees, although a bit small for butterflies. This plant can reach about 2 feet wide, needing 4 square feet in the garden. It does great in the front of a garden bed or along a pathway between stepping stones.

19. Damianita

Damianita (Chrysactinia Mexicana, on iNaturalist) is the perfect plant for a rock garden. Not native to DFW, it's from West Texas and Mexico where it gets much less rain than we do. It grows only 1-2 feet tall, and will take up only 3-5 square feet in the garden. It looks great in a mass planting of 5-7 plants and does well along gravel/crushed granite garden pathways. Its leaves are evergreen and have a pleasant aroma when touched. It blooms most dramatically in very early spring (attracting few butterflies, mainly bees).....with fewer blooms into late summer. Scatter the seeds for more free plants.

20. Frogfruit

Frogfruit (Phyla nodiflora, on iNaturalist) is the DFW gardener's best friend when you don't want to keep putting fresh mulch in the garden each year! A living groundcover that can capture sunlight that might otherwise fall on bare soil (for weeds to grow), this plant stays low at only 6-12" tall...perfect for growing in between taller plants like Fall Obedient Plant and Gregg's Mistflower. It offers up little white flowers that butterflies enjoy from March to November. When planted from a 4" pot, a single plant in just 12 months can fill in a 10 square foot area!

It puts out roots along its stem nodes when they touch moist bare soil, so you can allow the plant to root and then cut these joints and move the plant around in your garden. Move away a bit of mulch under the stem, and put a rock on the stem to keep it in contact with soil. 2 weeks later, you'll have a new plant. Guide the growing tips towards bare spots in your garden, and let the plant grow into this area. Pinching off the growing tip encourages the plant to put energy into its side shoots and get bushier.

This plant will bring tons of butterflies to your yard, who visit the flowers for nectar but also lay eggs on the plant for their caterpillars to eat. Be sure to avoid spraying any chemicals near this plant since frogfruit is eaten by the caterpillars of the Phaon Crescentspot, Buckeye, and White Peacock butterflies.

21. Zexmenia

Zexmenia (Wedelia acapulcensis, on iNaturalist) is a very drought-tolerant plant, native to Southwest Texas and Mexico and commonly used in DFW by cities in road medians and city parks. It blooms from May to November and provides habitat for the Bordered Patch butterfly who lays its eggs on this plant. It grows 2-3 feet tall and can get quite large at 3 feet wide. It benefits from being pruned after flowers are spent, to encourage more blooms. It dies back in the winter and comes back from the root. Dig and divide the roots every few years for more plants, or spread its seeds.

22. Four Nerve Daisy

Four Nerve Daisy (Tetraneuris scapose) is a great choice for a rock garden. This little yellow flower is only 6-12" tall and 6-12" wide. It will generate a lot of seeds, though, which you can scatter around the garden to encourage more plants. Give the plant 5 square feet, and scatter seeds to encourage a mass planting. It blooms in early spring through summer. It prefers drier soil, so don't plant it in a low area where water pools. Consider mixing in a bag of crushed granite or compost in the area where you plant it, if you have heavy clay soil. Place it in the garden on higher ground, where water will flow away from the plant.

23. Turk's Cap

Turk's Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus, on iNaturalist) is a common native plant found at city parks, Turk's Cap does well in both shade or sun, attracting hummingbirds with its bright red blooms from May to November. Birds enjoy eating the small berries. It benefits from being tip-pruned in spring, to encourage it to send out more shoots (and more blooms). It will die back in winter, and come back from the roots. With pruning, the plant will get about 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide (10 SF). Take stem cuttings to grow more plants.

24. Prairie Verbena

Prairie Verbena (Glandularia bipinnatifida, on iNaturalist) is a beautiful ground cover that offers many pink, lavender, and purple blooms for butterflies in early spring and in late summer. It gets about 16" tall and 2' wide (4 SF). Because it is highly drought-tolerant and low growing, it is a great plant for steep slopes in full sun in the yard where there are erosion problems. It will scatter seeds and give you more free plants.

25. Yellow Sundrops

Yellow Sundrops (Calylophus berlandieri, on iNaturalist) is a stunning bright-yellow, woody shrub that makes an excellent ground cover at only 6-12" tall (2 feet wide). It blooms in early spring through summer for 4+ months of color. It is not a super popular plant with butterflies, but the bright yellow flowers make up for this! Propagate new plants by scattering its seeds into empty spots in the garden, or with cuttings.

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