Friday, July 22, 2011

Garden of butterflies




  I do everything I can to attract butterflies to my gardens. One plant that  is a must is butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii).  It is a lovely shrub that spends most of the growing season covered in clusters of flowers.  To say that it attracts butterflies is an understatement!   I have included some butterfly bush blossoms below along with a few other pretties from my garden.







To me, butterflies represent the metamorphosis from ordinary to extraordinary.  The transformation from simple insect to ethereal winged beauty is a miracle of nature.






   Butterflies enjoy rocks to rest upon and a source of water.  They are also attracted to large areas of color, so plant multiples of smaller plants.  Butterfly weed is a host plant for monarch butterflies.  It also attracts swallowtails, fritillaries, painted ladies, hummingbirds, and hummingbird clearwing moths (have you every seen what looks like a large bee but flies like a hummingbird?  It’s a hummingbird clearwing moth!).





These are just a few of the flowers that butterflies flock to:

Coneflower - Echinacea
Tickseed - Coreopsis
Butterfly bush - Buddleia davidii
Butterfly weed - Asclepias tuberose
Lantana - Lantana camara
Black eyed Susan - Rudbeckia
Azalea - Rhododendron sp.
Viburmum - Viburnum
Marigold -  Tagetes
Zinnia - Zinnia elegans
Pincushion flower - Scabios)--
Garden phlox - Phlox paniculata
Cosmos - Cosmos bipinnatus
Bee balm - Monarda
Lavender - Lavendula
Delphinium - Delphinium grandiflorum
Stonecrop - Sedum
Speedwell - Veronica spicata









These asiatic lilies remind me of monarchs.











I use corn syrup in my icing, which gives my cookies a shiny almost glaze like finish.  They remind me of stained glass windows.










I love it when my two favorite activities (baking and gardening) collide. 







                                                                       Cookies + 





                                                                         Nature =




                                                                             Bliss!

Me and my butterflies are flitting around blogland with
Lines Across My Face
StoneGable
Dittle Dattle
Well Seasoned Life
Vanilla Bean Girls
Delicate Construction
Not Just a Housewife
The Tablescaper
Pink Saturday
Tatertots and Jello
Between Naps on the Porch
Fun with Food Friday
Vintage Inspiration Fridays
Foodie Friday
Chic on a Shoestring
Tidy Mom
French Country Cottage
My Romantic Home

24 comments:

  1. Hi lovely lady.
    I was looking at my sidebar and you had a new post.. I love your Butterfly so Beautiful... I WILL take one doz...Im one of your old followers on your lovely Blog. I hope you can come over to my new Tablescape with my Butterfly dishes. I hope you have a Great Weekend... xxoo Diane

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  2. Gorgeous!!! You have an amazing talent!!!

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  3. Hi lovely lady.
    I love your comments about the Butterfly cookies... Thanks for the come back~~~ I hope you have a great weekend.
    XXOO Diane

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  4. these are just stunning...Sophia and I were out and about on a walk and the monarchs are all over and I thought that a monarch would make a lovely cookie and LOOK HERE! VIOLA!

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  5. Really beautiful job! And thank-you for all of the wonderful information!

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  6. WOW - you are so very talented!

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  7. Those turned out great! I like the corn syrup idea - they DO have a stained glass effect - very cool!

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  8. beautiful! very inspiring
    -Jeannine
    http://craftingforchiari.blogspot.com/

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  9. Beautiful cookies. I love butterflies and feel the same way you do about what they represent. I have lots of lantana but my butterfly bush died. I need to try and plant some of the other stuff you mentioned.

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  10. OMGoodness, Lisa. The cookies you create are so realistic & beautiful ... as are the lovely gardens you share.

    Happy PS weekend ~
    TTFN ~
    Marydon

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  11. So beautiful! Perfect for a garden party.
    -Lynn

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  12. Happy Pink Saturday Lisa Sweetie...
    Oh my gosh, what gorgeous cookies you have created. They are SO real like, I love that. Would love your recipe sweet one. I don't think I could eat it, it is such a beautiful piece of artwork.

    Love the information on the butterfly attraction plants. I don't have many of those in my garden right now, here in the desert not much is growing. However, the butterflies have been happily hovering around my lemon tree. It has lots of lemons right now, just waiting to ripen and eat. Yummmy.

    I am your newest follower. I can't wait to see what you share next. Please stop over and say hello. I would be delighted to have you follow my blog as well. Country hugs sweetie, Sherry

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  13. Oh, my goodness! Your butterflies look real! Do you think butterflies would flock to the butterfly cookies? !!!!!!!! Have a great week!

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  14. Your butterfly cookies are amazing - much too precious to eat!

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  15. WOW! These are truly an site to see!
    *Oh and I am your newest follower! :)
    I cant believe I hadnt found you sooner!

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  16. Your cookies are always unbelievably gorgous!!! These are beautiful and thank you for the butterfly gardening info.

    I wish that you would show us what must be an AMAZING collecting of cookie cutter!!!

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  17. These are gorgeous! I have a friend who's an entomologist and loves butterflies. She'd go crazy over these cookies. Thanks for stopping by and sharing on A Well-Seasoned Life's Sweet Indulgences Sunday.

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  18. LOVE this post!Just came back-in from my butterfly garden! We have three big monarchs there now. Thank-you for the list.

    Please stop by..we have butterflies in the post....

    love, kelee katillac

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  19. I'm all-a-flutter over your cookies!! Cookies + gardening DO equal bliss! Love your stained glass icing. Happy Gardening :-)

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  20. I just went to a butterfly garden last week and now I want to learn more about them. The garden is beautiful and the cookies are so cute. The icing is so intricate and I love the little details. I would love it if you would stop by the crafty link party I just started at http://linesacrossmyface.blogspot.com and link up this post.
    :) Rachel

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  21. I am so happy to know the flowers that attract butterflies! Butterflies are magical. Just as your cookies!!!! They are as pretty as the real thing!
    Thanks for bringing your culinary beauty to ON THE MENU MONDAY!
    Yvonne

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  22. Wow. I am amazed to see such detail on a cookie! You're very talented

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  23. Your talents never cease to amaze me! Thanks for being a part of Seasonal Sundays.

    - The Tablescaper

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  24. The link actually did work on Monday after all. I guess it just took a while to show up. Thanks for joining the link party. I hope to see you again this Monday :)
    Rachel
    http://linesacrossmyface.blogspot.com

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