蜜桃恋人

How to Grow a Butterfly Bush

Attract beautiful butterflies to your garden with a butterfly bush.

Photo Credit
Willowpix/Getty
Botanical Name
Buddleia davidii
Plant Type
Shrubs and Bushe
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Soil pH
Varies
Bloom Time
Summer
Fall
Flower Color
Pink
Purple
Red
White
Yellow
Hardiness Zone
5
6
7
8
9
10
Special Features
Attracts Butterflies
Attracts Songbirds

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Planting, Growing, and Pruning Butterfly Bushes

Catherine Boeckmann

The butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii) is a fast-growing shrub with masses of showy, fragrant flowers that attract pollinators. Planted in spring or fall before frost, this perennial will bloom from summer through autumn. Learn how to grow a butterfly bush (and learn if you should plant a butterfly bush).

About Butterfly Bushes

Also called 鈥渟ummer lilacs,鈥 Buddleja are hardy to Zone 5 and remain evergreen from Zone 8 south. Growing 5 to 10 feet tall, this large, arching shrub produces an abundance of flowers鈥攍ong, spiked trusses鈥攊n mainly purple and pink colors. The shrub grows well in perennial gardens or as a shrub border, and the flowers are good for cutting.

Don鈥檛 prune at the wrong time. Butterfly bush growth appears on new wood, so pruning should wait until the new wood is ready to grow in spring. Also, be patient with this shrub as it may not leaf out in the spring until after other perennials. 

butterfly on a butterfly bush

Invasive Concerns of Butterfly Bushes

Please note that the butterfly bush, originally imported from China, has been classified as an invasive species in many U.S. states as it鈥檚 known to crowd out native plants that are essential to wildlife. In warm climates, it can become a noxious weed and spread aggressively, while in cooler climates, it mostly stays contained if gardeners deadhead the flowers.

Note: The butterfly bush does provide adult butterflies with nectar similar to that of many flowers. However, it is not a 鈥渉ost plant鈥 for butterfly larvae; if you want the butterflies to stay, be sure to add native host plants such as milkweed, aster, and dill. See plants that attract butterflies.  

If you would still like to put a butterfly bush in your garden, there are a few species of non-invasive butterfly bushes native to the southwestern United States. Also, there are newer varieties that stay compact and won鈥檛 take over your garden. See our native list of butterfly bushes below.

Please check with your local cooperative extension for more information.

Read Next

Planting

Choose a location with full sun and moist, well-drained soil. 

When to Plant

How to Plant

  • Loosen the soil from 12 to 15 inches deep and mix in a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost.
  • Dig a hole twice the diameter of the plant container.
  • When placing the plant in the hole, the top of the rootball should be level with the soil surface. Gently backfill the hole around the rootball. Firm the soil.
  • Water thoroughly.

Growing

Caring for Butterfly Bushes

  • Water freely when in growth and sparingly otherwise. In the summer, water if rainfall is less than 1 inch per week.
  • Avoid fertilizing butterfly bush; too much fertility promotes leaf growth over flower production.
  • Remove spent flower spikes to encourage new shoots and flower buds.  In addition, it is important to deadhead the flowers just as they start to wither so that this invasive plant doesn’t spread volunteer seeds. Deadheading of this invasive is now required in many states.
  • Each spring, apply a thin layer of compost, then 2 to 4 inches of mulch to retain moisture and control weeds.
  • In cold, Northern climates, spread mulch up to 6 inches deep around the trunk to nurture it through the winter.
  • Buddleias are very late to break dormancy, so don’t be in a hurry to assess winter damage.
  • The bush should bloom abundantly even in its first year. In warmer climates, the bushes will grow into trees and develop rugged trunks that peel; peeling is normal.
  • In the northern limit of their range, they behave as herbaceous perennials, dying back to the root in cold winters.

Pruning Butterfly Bushes

Butterfly bushes must be pruned vigorously, or their flowers will grow up so high that you can’t see and enjoy them!

  • Since butterfly bushes bloom on new wood, even if there is no die-back, cut them back to the ground early each spring. Yes, hack to the ground! 
  • Also, prune out dead stems, cutting them close to the ground.
  • Even where winters are mild enough for the stems to survive, prune severely to stimulate abundant growth on which flowers are borne.

Types

We are no longer recommending new plantings of the butterfly bush, given its categorization as an invasive in most of North America. Instead, we recommend using plants that better support the native landscape and food web, given our declining pollinator population. See alternative plants that attract butterflies.

Native Alternatives to Butterfly Bushes

Here are a few great flowering alternatives that also serve as host plants for caterpillars:

See a list of host plants native to your area here:

Gardening Products

Pests/Diseases

  • Susceptible to capsid bugs, caterpillars, weevils, mullein moths, and spider mites.
  • Fungal leaf spots and die-backs can occur.
  • Butterfly bushes are one of many deer-resistant plants.
Shrubs and Trees
About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it鈥檚 not surprising that she and The Old Farmer鈥檚 蜜桃恋人 found each other. She leads digital content for the 蜜桃恋人 website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana. Read More from Catherine Boeckmann
 

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Comments

Hi Bev, Butterfly bushes aren’t usually demanding, however, they do require full sun and rich well-drained soil. Is your plant in a sunny spot? Is your soil draining so the plant doesn’t have 鈥渨et feet.鈥 Is the soil rich with compost? Apply a thin layer of compost each spring, followed by a 2- to 4-inch layer of mulch to retain moisture and control weeds

Do not prune the Butterfly Bush at the wrong time. This should be done in early spring before new growth begins. The flowers bloom on new wood.  That said, you may prune rigorously in early spring. Pruning butterfly bushes to within one foot of the ground annually enhances the flower display.

If you’re still stumped, we’d suggest speaking to the place which sold you the bush since it’s only four months old.  Butterfly bushes are amazingly resilient so all the best.

Diane Cox (not verified)

7 years 7 months ago

Is there any way I can re-pot my very old butterfly plant if the roots have grown out the bottom of the pot into the ground? I want to put it in a much larger pot than it is in, but I just discovered it is now grounded. Is there any way I can re-pot it without damage?

Certainly you can repot it: You can cut the roots at ground level, or unearth as many roots as you reasonably can and put it into the new, larger pot. Either way, as with any transplanted or trans-potted plant, this one will need time to become settled in its new container. These are pretty hardy plants (some say, invasive) so it should survive without harm. Just give it time.

Rebecca (not verified)

7 years 7 months ago

We live in michigan. We planted our bushes last year and have not done a thing to them. They look dry should we cut them and should they have any green or buds on them at this time?

Buddy (not verified)

7 years 8 months ago

I usually cut these back in Feb or early March. I haven't cut them back yet this year and the bushes are now full of leaves top to bottom. Is it ok to cut them back at this point, or better to just wait until next year to cut back? Thanks.

Butterfly bushes only bloom on new growth. Cutting back is done in spring (hoorah!) so since we are only 10 days on, this is a fine time to do it. You can cut it to 12 to 24 inches high.

Diane (not verified)

7 years 9 months ago

It's about 14 yrs old and the blooms aren't as colorful (deep purple) or large as they once were. Any ideas?

Has it fallen into the shade of something else? Perhaps you need to boost the soil contents? For the vividly colored butterfly bushes, plant in sun and in rich soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.5. When planted in shade, butterfly flowers tend to be pale pastels or even white. We hope this helps you.

Bill (not verified)

8 years ago

We live in North Texas. The sun can be very strong. Being new to Butterfly bushes, does full sun even include Texas sun and heat? We are trying to find the best place to plant our bush, so it will florish.


You are in luck. Buddleia loves full sun. It grows well in average soil with medium moisture and good drainage. However, bear in mind that it is considered an invasive species so consider finding an alternative such as Summersweet (Clethera alnifolia) or, at the very least, only plant the one you already have and no more than that.