The graceful wind gliders – butterflies – are always a favorite when it comes to attracting life into your garden. There are plenty of ways to bring pollinators in, but in my years of researching plants, there are most definitely two you’ll want to avoid: butterfly bush and tropical milkweed. Why? Keep on reading.

Butterfly Bush (Buddleja davidii)

To start, butterfly bush is not native to North America, it’s native to Asia. Because of that, butterflies can’t use it as a host site for their babies, which means the butterfly life cycle can’t be completed on this plant like it can with better native options such as butterfly milkweed.

Another way to think about it: planting a butterfly bush is like opening a candy shop for butterflies. It draws them in for sugar (literally), but without providing the real nutrients they need to thrive. A more balanced “meal” would come from plants like Joe-Pye weed or bee balm. Mind you, butterfly bush won’t kill them—it’s just not doing them any favors.

And because it’s not from here, it often competes with native plants and can aggressively take over.

Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica)

Next on the list: tropical milkweed. Another non-native to the United States, this plant can actually disrupt monarch migration. Because it doesn’t die back in the winter, monarchs are more likely to stick around instead of making their very important journey south.

At first, that might not sound so bad, but here’s the catch. Tropical milkweed can host a protozoan parasite called Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE). When caterpillars ingest it and later emerge as butterflies, they can be covered in spores. As you can imagine, that makes them far less likely to survive and reach adulthood.

What to Plant Instead

If you’re looking to attract native butterflies here in Georgia – like the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail – I’ve got plenty of better options for you.

For herbaceous plants, try Joe-Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum), ironweed (Vernonia species), common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), and native phlox (Phlox paniculata). And if you’ve got room for a tree, consider black cherry (Prunus serotina).

Don’t forget to check out my monarch post for more on (you guessed it) monarch butterflies and even more plant ideas to support them.