Hundreds of native Texas butterflies inhabit our open air Butterfly Gardens...

Butterflies are wondrous brightly colored insects with two pairs of large, beautiful wings that are covered with iridescent scales. Like all insects, butterflies have 3 body parts, six jointed legs, compound eyes, an exoskeleton and a pair of antennae. The Lone Star State is home to more than 400 species of butterflies.

The Butterfly Gardens at Wildseed Farms is designed to create a biological system or habitat that attracts, protects, and nourishes the butterfly through all four stages of its life. Butterflies need food (plants and flowers), water, shelter and host plants on which the female butterfly lays her eggs.

Host Plants are usually species specific. A butterfly will only lay eggs on a plant variety that her caterpillars will eat as they hatch. A caterpillar’s first meal is its own eggshell, but it spends most of its time eating the leaves and flowers of the Host or Larval plant. Nectar Plants provide nourishment for adult butterflies. Most butterflies drink the nectar of a variety of flowers including many Central Texas Natives. You can attract butterflies to your backyard by planting suitable flowers from which they can feed. Many plants that attract butterflies can be purchased in our Nursery.

Butterflies use sunlight to regulate their body temperature. In cool weather butterflies sun themselves to warm up for flight. Dark areas on a butterfly’s wings absorb warmth from the sun. This helps them attain a flight temperature of 86 degrees. The best time to see butterflies fluttering around our gardens is on a warm, sunny day (at least 70 degrees) mid-morning to late afternoon.