Gill Garden Center + Landscape Co.
Corpus Christi, TX Garden Center
Happy Holidays, gardeners! We hope you’re having fun with family and friends and enjoying nice weather outdoors. We’re back open regular hours December 26th through December 30th. We’ll be open 9-2 New Year’s Eve and closed New Year’s Day. Cheers to 2026! p.s. – check out these amazing cookies from our Gill holiday party!
Rain in the forecast, wonderful temperatures, holidays with family and friends = AMAZING time to garden! We’re all busy planting, re-designing, fertilizing, and getting ready for outdoor fun with guests. Here are our top tips for making the most of a very important month in the garden.
Feeding your plants this month is a must. This includes lawns, trees, and most plants. Everything is actively growing, which means they’ll need more food to continue looking their best. Medina Growin Green is a great multi-purpose food for landscape plants, shrubs, trees, veggies, lawns, you name it! For blooming perennials, annual flowers, and veggies we really like using a good organic granular food like Medina Growin Green, Plant Tone by Espoma, or Rose Glo in combination with Medina Hasta Gro liquid. Feed with the granular on the 1st of each month, then follow up with liquid Hasta Gro on the 15th. Add these reminders to your calendar and you can’t go wrong!
Yes, you can still fertilize your lawn, even though our lawn watering is limited. Using a good organic lawn food, like our go-to Medina Growin Green, promotes root growth and long-term health, which makes lawns more tolerant of less water. Ideally you’d want to water the fertilizer in, but you don’t have to. Medina Growin Green is gentle and won’t burn your lawn. You can apply it now and water it in slowly over a few weeks. If you have trees in your yard, keep in mind that fertilizer and water need to be applied at the drip line, aka where rainwater naturally drips off the outer edge of the canopy. Therefore, if you apply fertilizer to your lawn and water it in for the trees, your lawn will get the benefit too. You can also try to time your lawn fertilizing with a light rain. We typically don’t recommend waiting for rain to fertilize since a heavy rain would wash most of the fertilizer granules away. But, given the watering limitations, taking advantage of a light rain is a good solution.
Hand watering with a watering wand that has a cutoff valve is the most efficient and best way to water, especially for new plantings. Watering plants low to the ground keeps water from escaping via wind and evaporation and keeps water off the leaves which can invite fungal issues. Watering slowly (by turning down the pressure on your watering wand or kinking your hose) ensures that more water gets down to the roots instead of running off the surface.
Keep in mind that hand watering and drip irrigation are allowed during current watering restrictions. You can hand water any day before 10am or after 6pm, and you can supplement with drip irrigation once every other week. We carry the pro watering wands that we use here at Gill’s as well as moisture meters, timers, and other supplies to help make the most of your water.
For any new plantings, including turfgrass, you can apply for a temporary exemption to watering restrictions and use sprinklers and irrigation systems in order to help get plants, lawns, and trees established. We can help you file for the exemption if you like – it’s a straightforward process.
April is time to add some blooming perennials to attract pollinators like butterflies, bees, and birds to your garden. You support pollinators (and the planet!) and in return they help you have more blooms, better production on your veggies, and a more vibrant landscape! Remember – April is when we start seeing hummingbirds! Add a few of their favorites like this native salvia greggii, native flame acanthus, red yucca, or firebush and make your backyard a preferred stop.
It’s time to plant hot peppers, squash, zucchini, basil, beans, and more! When starting veggies, the trick is to get the soil as active and alive as possible. Amend your existing soil with Nature’s Blend Compost (about 1 bag per 12 sq. ft.), then add a little Bio Tone starter fertilizer with mycorrhizal fungi and a good handful of worm castings when you plant each plant. Then follow our trusted fertilizer schedule – granular food (like Medina Growin Green or Plant Tone) on the 1st of the month and liquid Hasta Gro on the 15th! Remember that veggies use a lot of energy and need these regular feedings to produce – you WILL get more and better-tasting fruit with a good fertilizer schedule. Plus, strong, vigorous veggie plants are less susceptible to pest damage.
We all know that fresh mulch is like a fresh coat of paint for your garden – instant makeover! But did you know that applying a proper 3” layer of natural mulch keeps underlying soil temps more than 20 degrees cooler?! A good mulch layer keeps weeds at bay, and as it breaks down over time, it add nutrients to your soil. And perhaps most importantly right now, a good mulch layer retains moisture, which means big water savings.
Get outside and enjoy the gorgeous weather and prep for gathering with family and friends! For the quickest and easiest impact outdoors, think hanging baskets full of periwinkles, coleus, hummingbird falls salvia, bougainvillea, and more overflowing with color. Some pops of color plus fresh mulch in your beds and you’re ready to host! For indoors, our favorite flower arrangements are those cut fresh from the garden and landscape, or we have some cute dried arrangements too!
Yay for May! Everything’s growing and blooming and supercharged by recent rains! We hope you are too. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, which is a good time to think about the peace of mind that gardening brings us. Gardeners know all the research is true – gardening is one of the healthiest, most satisfying, and most fulfilling things humans can do! Here are our Top 7 Must Do’s this May to keep you and your garden feelin’ good.
We’ve got a big May planned here at Gill’s with another round of fun workshops and events. Next weekend, on Saturday, May 9th, we’re inviting kids to come pot up a free flower for Mom for Mother’s Day. The following week, we’re hosting our first ever Ikebana workshop led by our fav local floral designer, Julia Prohorova aka Wild Veggie Bouquet! We’ve got Bigfoot’s Rockeaters coming for a cactus growing talk later this month, plus round 2 of our Nightbloom Market after-hours shopping event – this time with more vendors! Click here for more info, RSVPs, and tickets!
It’s time to plant lots of different blooming perennials and blooming trees. Get them established in May so they are rooted and acclimated to withstand warmer temps this summer. Staples like Esperanza, many varieties of Salvia, Lantana, and tons more are all blooming beautifully right now. And blooming native trees like Retama and Wild Olive are looking great right now. Added bonus: blooming perennials and trees attract lots of butterflies and hummingbirds!
Warm weather veggie time! Plant all kinds of peppers, zucchini, squash, melons, and okra this month for continued harvesting into the summer months. If you planted tomatoes, cucumbers, and other early spring veggies, you’ll be harvesting now or very soon. Be sure to harvest often! It keeps birds & insects from finding them first, and helps redirect energy to produce more fruit. If you do have insect issues in your veggie garden, our go-to organic control is Spinosad soap – safe for food but takes care of a lot of common bad bugs.
We all know that fresh mulch is the quickest garden makeover! But did you know that applying a proper 3” layer of natural mulch keeps underlying soil temps more than 20 degrees cooler?! A good mulch layer keeps weeds at bay, and as it breaks down over time, it add nutrients to your soil. And perhaps most importantly right now, a good mulch layer retains moisture, which means big water savings.
Speaking of watering, despite long-term drought conditions and potential water emergencies in the news, we need to continue to water smartly. Watering consistently now (just enough) will help maintain depth moisture, make the most of rainfall, and help plant roots grow deeper – all of which will reduce water needs and save water in the long run. Does all of our plant water need to come from the tap? Nope! You can conserve a lot of city water by collecting rainwater, A/C condensate, water from dehumidifiers, and re-using gray water from washing machines and dishwashers. If you’re interested in collecting a lot of rainwater, the Gill’s landscape team installs custom rainwater collection systems using stainless steel cisterns that are very attractive in the landscape and last a lifetime. Just 1″ of rain on 1,000 square feet of roof space can catch 600 gallons of rainwater. Get in touch!
We are big fans of the simple bucket mosquito trap. Just fill a bucket 3/4 with water, add a good handful of lawn or plant clippings, and toss in a Mosquito Dunk or Mosquito Bits. These dissolve in the water and release bacteria that target mosquito larvae and kill them before they hatch. And they’re organic and not harmful to birds, bees, pets or humans! Set a few of these traps, sprinkle some organic Mosquito Beater granules around walkways and patios, and use Skeeter Screen incense sticks near where you’re working or hanging out outside. Remember that using chemical mosquito foggers kills all the good bugs too, some of which help control mosquitos and other bad bugs.
Let us help you find something pretty, useful, or both for the gardening moms and grads in your life. Pottery, birdbaths, wind chimes, quality garden tools, hats, gloves, garden decor, plantable greeting cards, gardening books – lots of options. You can purchase Gill gift cards online here. Or come find the gift that gardeners love most – plants 🙂
Temperatures don’t feel like it yet, but it’s time to start making the transition into an exciting new fall planting season! There’s a lot to do in August to set yourself up for big garden success this fall and beyond. Here are our top must-do’s!
August is the time to start your fall veggie seeds! Next week, we’ll receive the new 2025-2026 seeds from our favorite seed suppliers, including heirloom vegetables, brand new releases, and wildflower seeds. Try Cow Pots (cattle manure pots) or seed starting trays to start seeds indoors this month, move to a covered patio once they sprout, then into your garden beds once they’re robust enough to live outside. This will protect the seedlings and slowly acclimate them to outdoor temps. Our Fall Vegetable Planting Guide provides the specific seed-planting dates to help plan your fall garden. Remember – if you want bountiful fall veggies, you need to get an early start!
Don’t wait until fall arrives to start planting for fall pollinators – start cooking now so their meal will be ready when they arrive! Important fact: birds, bats, bees, butterflies, beetles, and small mammals that pollinate plants are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food worldwide. Plants attract and provide food for them to keep the cycle going. For example – plant Zinnia and sunflower seeds now, and they’ll be ready to feed migrating birds this fall. Plant salvias now, get roots established, and they’ll be gorgeous this fall and covered in hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. If you want to provide the best benefits for the most pollinators, plant Texas natives!
August is the time to start prepping fall veggie beds! Finish your Summer harvesting, clean out your beds, and pull weeds. To get your soil ready, we recommend mixing Nature’s Blend Compost or Cotton Burr Compost into your soil to replenish nutrients and loosen the soil before planting. About 1 bag per 12 sq. ft. is good. Once prepped, add a thick layer of pine straw or hardwood mulch, which will help retain moisture, keep weeds from sprouting, and keep the soil cooler until you’re ready to plant. As you plan your space, think crop rotation – don’t plant the same veggies in the exact same place you planted them last season, or you encourage pests and diseases.
We’ve been lucky to have some well-timed rain showers this summer, which has created some depth moisture in the soil. Our goal with watering this month should be to maintain it. For lawns and established plants and trees, this means watering less frequently, but watering deeply when you water. New plantings will require water every day for the first couple weeks to get the roots established, but again, think deep drinks so the roots dive deeper. Use a water wand with a cut-off valve to make it easy on you and conserve water. Pro tip: Conserve water by watering at ground level, not spraying from above. This way, water soaks down to the roots rather than evaporating off the leaves.
Proper mulching using natural Hardwood or Pine Straw mulch has big benefits, especially during hot weather. A good 3” deep layer of mulch will keep your plants and the soil moist and cool for longer after you water or after it rains. Not just a little cooler – we’re talking more than 25 degrees cooler!! Cooler soil temps allow plant roots and beneficial microorganisms in the soil to flourish. When mulching, give the main trunks or stems of your plants a little space – mulch 3” deep throughout the bed, but no more than 1” deep right up against the main trunks/stems of plants.
Start your engines…fall planting season is here!! September is the best time to plant almost everything – veggies, trees, shrubs, natives, hummingbird plants, and more. Here are our top 7 must-do’s in September as we head into fall, our favorite South Texas gardening season!
It’s time! Tomatoes, peppers, & warm weather edibles should be planted early in September at the latest. Plant cool weather veggies & herbs anytime in September and remember to shelter them from still-intense sun and keep watered. When planting, you can’t go wrong with organic BioTone starter fertilizer + a good handful of Earthworm Castings. Neither of these require precise measurement, and they make an incredible combo for building stronger, deeper roots, preventing pests, and creating an active soil environment for plants to thrive.
Here’s our Fall veggie planting schedule. And save space for citrus trees, figs, and other fruit trees to round off your garden grocery store! They’ll all be arriving before or right around mid-September.
Chances are you have established plants that could benefit from a clean-up after working so hard all summer. Wait until about September 15th and give them a light pruning to make way for new growth this fall. A good rule of thumb for most plants is to prune up to 1/3 (not more) in the fall, then wait until January to do a heavy pruning/cutback. If you have questions about how to prune specific plants, you know who to call!
Plants that are cold hardy (trees and woody shrubs) will benefit greatly by planting during our fall season. They’re under less heat stress, and they grow more roots through the fall and winter, making them stronger and ready to take off next spring. More roots, stronger plants, and less watering! Oak trees, Crape Myrtles, Hawthorns, Yaupon Holly, Plumbago, Boxwoods and a host of other trees and shrubs should be planted starting this month for the best possible start.
We’re bringing in lots of new plants this month with our pollinator friends in mind! While you’re choosing what to plant, consider adding Texas Natives like Turk’s Cap and Lantana that birds and bees love. If you want to attract and support butterflies, try native butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Gregg’s mist flower, and lots of different blooming salvias. So many gorgeous options! Bring in some pictures of your outdoor space and we can help you plan the perfect pollinator garden – big or small. You can DIY or we can plant it for you!
We’re in such a better water situation than we were last summer/fall! You can and should be watering regularly. Under current Stage 1 rules, you can use spray irrigation or hose end sprinklers once a week on your trash day. This is a great schedule for lawns for the month of September. Just be sure you’re applying about 1″ of water each time. As we move into October, cut back lawn watering to once every other week, depending on rain. Hold off on fertilizing lawns until October. For landscape beds and gardens, drip irrigation, soaker hoses, and long watering wands are great – you get water right down to the roots with almost no evaporation. Under current watering rules, you can run drip irrigation systems any day before 10 and after 6. But keep in mind, a good deep drink once a week is better than short durations every day. One more thing – if you want to make the most of your water, be sure to mulch! A good 2-3″ layer of fresh mulch this month will look great and be very effective for retaining moisture when you water.
Ruby-throated hummingbirds will soon make their way through for the fall migration! These tiny birds are BIG eaters. They stop here in the Coastal Bend to fuel up before their non-stop flight across the Gulf of Mexico. Host them in your yard by planting some of their favorite foods! Hummingbirds find plants using their excellent vision and are attracted to bright colored blooms, which indicate a high-sugar food source. Some of our favs for South Texas are Flame Acanthus (aka hummingbird bush), Salvias (like native Salvia greggii and Salvia leucantha), Cape Honeysuckle, Firebush, Firecracker plant, Coral bean – the list goes on! Plant a few of these and hummingbirds will find them. And don’t forget to visit the Rockport-Fulton HummerBird Celebration September 17-20!
Gill Garden Talks and Events are back this Fall! We’re kicking it off with DeAnna and Wyatt’s Fall Veggie Gardening Talk on Saturday, September 19th! We’ve got all kinds of fun planned including a houseplant propagation workshop on September 24th and our 2nd Annual Fall Plant Fest on October 10th, . Stay tuned on our events page and on Instagram and Facebook for details of each event. We can’t wait!
With slightly cooler temps ahead, rain in the forecast, and all our fav veggies arriving, we’re majorly in the mood for fall gardening! Even though it’s still warm out, right now is the time to plant your fall veggie garden to ensure you can get a good harvest. Here’s our guide to growing the best veggies this fall – plenty for you and plenty to share!
Last chance to plant tomatoes and peppers! The average tomato needs 60-90 days to mature and produce fruit. That means they’ll be ready around the mid-late November if we plant now. Similarly, most peppers need 60-80 days to maturity. Be sure to get them planted now or very soon so you can get a good harvest before we have chances of cold weather which tomatoes and peppers can’t handle. While we’re reaching the end of the window to plant tomatoes and peppers, cool weather veggies like broccoli, cabbage, kale, Swiss chard, and cauliflower are just arriving! Even though these can handle cooler temps, you still need to get them in the ground in September to ensure you’ll get a good harvest. Radish and carrot seeds should be started this month as well. Take a look at our Fall veggie planting schedule. And save space for citrus trees, figs, and other fruits! They’ll all be arriving this week and next!
Corpus Christi clay soil and sandy soil in Rockport or on the island both need a boost to make them suitable for growing veggies. Very simple – add compost! Whether you’re in clay or sand, we recommend 1 bag of Nature’s Blend compost per 12 square feet to establish a veggie bed. Just work the compost into the first 6-8 inches of the native soil and you’ll have a nice loose and bioactive mix ready for planting. You can use the same rough formula when filling raised beds, or use our Gardener’s Magic soil blend which is formulated for raised beds and already has the compost and other nutrients mixed in – just pour and plant! You can add even more life to your veggie soil by supplementing with earthworm castings, dried molasses, and Bio-Tone starter fertilizer with mycorrhizal fungi. Think of these as probiotics for your soil. Just like our gut microbiome keeps us healthy and balanced, an active soil microbiome will help your veggie plants perform optimally…bigger root systems and more fruit!
If you’re following this guide, get ready for big growth! Be sure to give your plants adequate spacing to grow to their mature size. For example, tomatoes should be planted a good 4 feet apart, peppers should be 2.5-3 feet apart, and cucumbers, squash, broccoli, and cauliflower should be planted 18″ apart. Good spacing not only gives them room to grow to their full potential, but also ensures good airflow around the plants and helps prevent pest outbreaks. While plants are small, add/build your support structures! We carry tomato cages, wooden trellises, pre-made bamboo trellises, and bamboo poles or t-posts if you want to build your own. And be sure to have some good flexible garden tie tape!
New veggie plants need water every day, preferably in the morning. Once established, you can water some plants less frequently. The best thing to do is to check your garden every day. You’ll get a good sense for which plants are thirstier than others. Soaker hoses can be a big help. Just snake them through your veggie beds and turn on the tap or use a timer. When watering by hand, think like a soaker hose – water slowly and gently at soil level. Watering over the top of your plants or splashing soil up onto the plants invites fungal disease and pests. A good mulch layer can help prevent soil from splashing up onto your plants, plus prevent weeds and help retain moisture. We love pine straw mulch for veggie gardens because its so easy to work with and it does a great job at suppressing weeds.
If you want your veggies to feed you, you gotta feed them! Plants require LOTS of energy to produce fruit. If you take anything away from this blog, remember DeAnna’s organic fertilizer regimen: granular Plant Tone or Medina Growin Green on the 1st of the month, followed up by liquid Hasta Gro on the 15th. The granular fertilizer will slowly break down and feed your roots, while the liquid Hasta Gro sprayed over the leaves will make the foliage thick and strong. If you want strong plants and amazing veggie production, follow this schedule!
Insect pests in the veggie garden are pretty much inevitable, but controllable. Just like watering, the best way to control pests in the veggie garden is to inspect your plants every day and catch any problems early. We recommend having these 3 organic products on hand: Bt for caterpillars, diatomaceous earth for crawling insects like ants, and spinosad soap for beetles, aphids, and spider mites. If you’re not sure what’s eating your veggies, send us a photo or bring in a sample and we can identify and help you control.
If you follow this guide, you’re going to be set up for a bountiful harvest! It’s very important to harvest regularly so you get to enjoy all your efforts. Some veggies, like beans, squash, and cucumbers will need to be harvested daily! If you’ve grown cucumbers before, you know that one day they’ll look perfect and ripe, then the next day they’ll be twice the size and beyond their prime – huge and fibrous and flavorless. Keep in mind that birds, bugs, and other critters like ripe fruit too. Harvest it before they do! When you harvest regularly, you’re also signaling to the plant to redirect energy and produce more fruit.
December is here! These last few weeks of 2023 are sure to fly by. Our advice: make sure you spend some time in the garden to balance out the hectic holiday season. Here are our top to-do’s this month: what to plant, gift ideas, holiday plant care, and more.
Check out our December Garden Guide for more tips and remember that trees, shrubs, and perennials can be planted 12 months out of the year! The only difference is the amount of water they need depending on temperatures and wind!
There’s always the BEST time to get plants growing and here’s a few that LOVE this season as much as we do!
Trees…shade, flowering, small, big, they all benefit from planting now. Good root development during the cooler months of winter gives them better growth in spring and a deeper, stronger root system to withstand the summer heat.
Onions…we grow short-day onion varieties here in South Texas. Lucky for us the 1015 Texas Supersweet is one of those along with tasty Texas Early White & Southern Belle Red.
Roses…our mild winters are perfect for big, beautiful roses & the cooler temps will only make them prettier and the flower color richer.
Ornamental Cabbage…these winter classics need to be planted early this month and enjoyed through the season! Easy care, vibrant colors, and unique texture in the garden.
Alyssum…gorgeous white blooms all winter long. Did you know Alyssum flowers and leaves are edible? They have a pungent horseradish-y flavor.
Other plants that require short days…some plants require short days/enough hours of darkness to bloom and look their best. Think Aloes and other outdoor succulents, Camelia, native Salvia greggii, and Kalanchoes!
Fresh-cut Christmas Trees…we give all of our trees a fresh cut and get them in water immediately to preserve their freshness. Many customers ask us for another fresh cut before they take the tree home. If you decide to have us do another fresh cut, or if you do it yourself, keep in mind that you have 10 minutes to get the tree in water before that cut seals over! Check water in your tree stand daily and keep it full. If you have pets who like to drink or splash the water, try covering with a piece of foil.
Poinsettias…Think of poinsettias as succulents – because they are! They are a type of euphorbia. That means give them a good drink, but let them dry out between waterings. Also, the leaves bruise and break easily, so avoid touching them as much as possible. So tempting to touch!
Christmas Cactus…Probably the easiest of all holiday plants, and they can last a LONG time! There are stories of Christmas Cacti that have been gifted and passed down through families for 100+ years. They like well-lit areas, but not direct sunlight. Let dry between waterings, then mist the leaves as well as water the soil when its time to water.
Living Holiday Trees…Junipers, Norfolk Pines, Loblolly Pines, Magnolias and Ficus trees all make great Christmas trees that can be planted outside after the holidays. If you bring these in for decorating, be sure they have good bright natural light. Keep watered but not too much, and as soon as the holidays are done…take them outdoors for a breath of fresh air and get them in the ground.
If you have gardeners on your list this year, we’ve got you covered! Silverware herb markers, handmade ornaments, quality tools and gloves, nature-themed holiday cards, beautiful houseplant cutting jars, and lots more unique garden gifts. And of course, plants!! If they’re picky, you can’t go wrong with a Gill’s gift card!
Winter flowers are AMAZING right now! Violas and Pansies are breathtaking and Geraniums are full of buds and blooms. All that blooming makes them hungry, so take a moment and fertilize your beauties. We love using granular Plant Tone once a month, then following up with liquid Hasta Gro every 2 weeks. Both are organic and give you big results. Have that “one more empty pot” to fill?
Most houseplants will not experience a complete dormancy period during winter, but they will slow down growth and react to climatic changes like drier conditions inside the house. Give your houseplants more light and less water as temperatures and the amount of daylight hours drop. Dust/shine leaves regularly to ward off insects. Cooler temps = drier conditions and less of the humidity that houseplants love. Try grouping them together to create more humidity, or use a humidifier. When bringing patio plants inside for cold snaps, be sure to treat with All Seasons Horticultural Oil spray to prevent any pests (like scale insects) from hitching a ride indoors.
We typically don’t get a frost until January or February, but there’s always a chance! Be sure you’ve got your frost blankets or frost cloth ready to protect any tender outdoor tropicals and new plantings. Mulch beds at 2-3″ deep to help seal in warmth. And don’t prune yet! Remember that pruning signals to a plant that it’s time to put on new growth. Instead, plant leaves need to harden off and go dormant for the winter. Foliage that you leave on the plant will help insulate it against cold weather.
One of my favorite pastimes, in between planting, fertilizing, trimming, and mulching, is sitting in my backyard and watching the butterflies dance around my garden. Here’s a few tips to entice these beauties to YOUR GARDEN!
Locate a sunny area.
Butterflies and most butterfly attracting plants require bright sunshine.
Plant nectar producing flowers.
Butterflies visit flowers in search of nectar to eat. Many butterflies seem to prefer purple, yellow, orange and red- orange blossoms. Clusters of short, tubular flowers or flat-topped blossoms provide the ideal shapes for butterflies to easily land and feed.
Select single flowers rather than double flowers.
The nectar of single flowers is more accessible and easier for butterflies to extract than the nectar of double flowers, which have more petals per flower.
Use large splashes of color in your landscape.
Butterflies are first attracted to flowers by their color. Groups of flowers are easier for butterflies to locate than isolated plants.
Plan for continuous bloom throughout the season.
Butterflies are active from early spring until late fall. Plant a selection of flowers that will provide nectar throughout the entire growing season. For blooms throughout the year, plant hamelia, shrimp plant. jatropha, lantana, bulbine, buddleia, mist flower, & penta. For flowers spring and fall, try mexican flame vine, verbena, mexican mint marigold, pavonia, passion vine, salvias, & fall chrysanthemums.
Plant for perching.
Plant some evergreen trees or shrubs for perching and rain shelter. Example: Yaupon holly or desert willow.
Include host plants in your garden design.
Host plants provide food for the caterpillar and lure female butterflies into the garden to lay eggs.
Include damp areas or shallow puddles in the garden.
Some butterflies drink and extract salts from moist soil. Occasionally large numbers of male butterflies congregate around a moist area to drink, forming a “puddle club”.
Place flat stones in the garden.
Butterflies often perch on stones, bare soil or vegetation, spread their wings and bask in the sun. Basking raises their body temperature so they are able to fly and remain active.
Do not use pesticides in or near a butterfly garden.
Most traditional garden pesticides are toxic to butterflies. Use predatory insects, insecticidal soap or hand remove the pests if problems occur.
Become a butterfly watcher!
Get to know the colorful butterflies that visit your garden. They are easy to identify with a field guide or butterfly app!
-Sally
