If You Plant It

There are many plants that are magnets for butterflies, like the Cassia candelabra or Candlestick cassia or Empress candle (Senna alata) with its large, brilliant yellow candlelight spikes covered with unopened buds resembling candles – thus the common name. In South Florida, they bloom from April through November with large green winged-seed pods, and when they are mature and drop to the ground, they will create tiny seedlings. From a distance, a grouping of the Cassia candelabra growing in an unsymmetrical, showy pattern reminds you of an old-fashioned garden.

According to the University of Florida, this large spreading shrub is from Argentina, and during its blooming season, it is covered with yellow flower spikes from top to bottom. A mature plant can reach a height of 10 to 15 feet with an uneven branching pattern. This is a fast-growing plant from seedling to blooms, and it is also an easy plant to train and maintain for those with limited planting area; it does very well in large containers. Sharing the benefits of Cassia candelabra with friends and neighbors is easy, with its abundant seedlings that are growing at the bottom of each shrub.

The Cassia candelabra is a powerhouse pollinator as a host plant and a sure way to attract a pair of fluttering yellow Sulphur butterflies. They have bright yellow wings with a distinctive mix of gliding and short, fluttering flight patterns. Soon, your Cassia will be a haven for these beautiful butterflies and bees.

A Florida native, the passionflower vine (Passiflora incarnata) has a ‘passion’ for the beautiful orange butterflies. This native vine is cherished for its stunning purple bloom and is the host plant for the Gulf fritillary butterfly. It also attracts the zebra longwing (Florida’s State Butterfly) and a host of other pollinators. If you are lucky, you might find the Julia heliconian butterfly visiting the passion vine.

The passionflower vine comes in many colors, such as red and blue, but purple is more common and easy to grow. Be careful, as it can take over a trellis, fence, or even a bush nearby, but it can also take hard pruning. Following the bloom, the plant produces small green fruits and though edible, are flavorless. I just leave it on the plant for nocturnal creatures. This plant is low-maintenance, drought-resistant, and pest-resistant.

The vibrant purple flowers bloom for just a day, and it is often used to symbolize the last hours of the Passion of Christ. The word passion is a reference to the crucifixion, and parts of the flower are said to resemble the instruments used in the Passion of Christ – such as the number of the stamens (five wounds) and the five sepals and five petals representing the 10 apostles.

Passionflower vine is another plant that is a butterfly magnet for the zebra longwing (Heliconius charithonia), with its dark body marked by bands of cream stripes, just like a zebra. The Gulf fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) is bright orange in color with black markings and three white spots encircled in black. They are fun to watch as they dart and glide from one flower to another, depositing their eggs. Another bright orange butterfly visiting the passion vine is the beautiful Julia heliconian butterfly (Dryas iulia) with a narrow black border on the hindwing.

One plant that attracts three distinctive fluttering beauties, along with several types of bees, supports the local wildlife! If you are interested in the Native passionflower vine, check out the Florida Native Plant Society for a schedule of its Fall plant sale. Also, check out the upcoming Naples Yard and Garden Show in late October with vendors offering many plant options, and the annual Calusa Garden Club Plant Sale in November. As the heat and humidity lessen in October, it is also the perfect time to refresh your landscape with pollinator plants. Have FUN with it!