Get Almanac's Daily Updates Extended Forecasts Where to Buy Contact Us

How to Grow Butterfly Bushes: Planting, Pruning & Pollinator Tips

Attract beautiful butterflies to your garden with a butterfly bush.

Photo Credit
Willowpix/Getty
Botanical Name
Buddleia davidii
Plant Type
Shrubs and Bushes
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

Grow a Garden That Butterflies Can’t Resist—Just Don’t Forget to Deadhead!

Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

If you’ve ever dreamed of a garden buzzing with butterflies, the butterfly bush might seem like your perfect match. With its arching stems and cone-shaped clusters of fragrant blooms, this fast-growing shrub is a pollinator magnet that brings nonstop summer color. But before you plant, there’s more to consider—like when to prune (hint: not too early!) and whether your region may classify it as invasive. In this guide, we’ll help you plant, grow, prune, and responsibly care for Buddleja—so you can enjoy its beauty while being a smart steward of your garden.

About Butterfly Bushes

Also called “summer lilacs,” butterfly bushes (Buddleia davidii) 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—long, spiked trusses—in 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’t 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’s 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 “host plant” 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’t 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: Native Plant Finder

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

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the website companion of The Old Farmer's Almanac. She covers gardening, plants, pest control, soil composition, seasonal and moon c...
Read More from Catherine Boeckmann

More Like This

Comments

<span>Anonymous</span> Sun, 10/07/2012 - 13:50
I bought a butterfly bush this summer in a hanging basket. It is a beautiful 12 inch plant and has been blooming ever since I brought it home. I wonder when would be the best time of year to plant it in the ground. I live in Zone 7.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 10/08/2012 - 10:17
Fall is a good time to transplant a butterfly bush. It prefers moist, well-drained soil and partial to full sun. Add some compost to the soil prior to planting. In the spring prune the bush while it is still dormant.
<span>Anonymous</span> Thu, 09/20/2012 - 18:25
Can I tie my butterfly bush?? It seemed to grow out into the yard.. I planted it in early spring , looks great but getting hard to cut in front of it.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 09/21/2012 - 16:36
It's a good idea to tie up some of the branches that grow out into your lawn. In early spring prune the side branches leaving just a few of the main stems in the center of the bush. Some people prune the bush all the way down to the ground before new growth starts in the spring.
<span>Weisenhower</span> Fri, 09/13/2013 - 13:25
Thanks -that's just the question I was wondering. Thanks for the tip!
<span>Anonymous</span> Wed, 09/12/2012 - 16:48
My butterfly bush is big and beautiful and I just love it. However i have noticed this year that the flowers are dying early and I'm not sure if I should prune the dead flowers off the bush now in late summer in Indiana or leave alone and prune back to base in late winter.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Thu, 09/13/2012 - 12:41
For butterfly bush, it's OK at any time to remove flowers that have recently died (called deadheading). This will encourage more blossoms to develop during the bloom season (which usually ends sometime in October) and prevent the plant from focusing its energy on forming seeds. Usually when flowers die, it means that they have been pollinated and are starting to form seeds, or they have reached the end of their life cycle. Occasionally, it might mean an insect, disease, or cultural problem (such as excessive heat or freezing), but it's unlikely in this case, since the actual bush is doing well. No matter what the cause, it won't hurt the plant if you'd like to prune off the spent flowers.
<span>Anonymous</span> Wed, 09/05/2012 - 10:43
I live in Southern Ontario and have recently planted a butterfly bush. It's been almost 2 weeks since I've planted it and now it looks like it might be dying. Is this normal or something I can prevent? I absolutely love the bush and planted it in my front garden where it gets lots of sun. The lady at the gardening center recommended that I mix the soil with bone meal and line the hole I dug for the bush, prior to planting. I've watered at least twice a week if it hasn't rained recently. What else can I do to keep it living?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 09/05/2012 - 13:21
Butterfly bush is a very tough plant. It usually grows well with little water and no fertilizer. It does die back in the winter but will start showing new growth in spring. Prune the bush after your last frost in the spring and when you see new leaves on the plant.
<span>Anonymous</span> Mon, 09/03/2012 - 14:11
I am in Southern Ontario and thought I had lost my butterfly bush in March as we had unseasonally hot weather, it was in full leaf. We had a devasting frost and everything was gone. It came back and is just incredible with blooms, butterflies and a couple of hummingbirds. Just love it.