A successful butterfly garden has plants that meet butterfly's needs during all four life stages, the egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and adult. Butterflies drink nectar, so growing nectar-rich flowers will attract butterflies to your garden. Also, when their eggs hatch, the caterpillars eat the foliage of the plant they were laid on, so growing the right type of plants to feed caterpillars is important, since it will allow female butterflies to lay their eggs in your garden.
Most butterflies only eat flower nectar.
Different species of butterfly usually prefer different flowers, but they will generally feed on many types of flowers from plants, shrubs, vines, and trees. The eggs are frequently laid on the underside of leaves. It frequently hangs from a twig and is often camouflaged. Plan your garden so that there are flowers much of the year, so that there is a steady supply of nectar for the butterflies. Butterflies use sunlight to regulate their body temperature.