How To Start A Butterfly Greenhouse

Written by GreenhouseGusto in Greenhouse Q&A

Butterflies are attractive insects that can pollinate various flowers in your garden and help with blooming. The best part is you can build a greenhouse for these colored insects on your property.

A greenhouse for butterflies will help you improve the aesthetics of your home. It will also allow you to protect different species easily.

Here is a complete guide about starting a butterfly greenhouse.

How To Start A Butterfly Greenhouse

You can start a butterfly greenhouse by choosing a specific location on your property with the right amount of space. Materials such as butterfly-attracting flowers, flat rocks, a proper puddler, trees, and shrubs will help you build a butterfly greenhouse easily.

Creating a butterfly greenhouse is easy if you follow the instructions carefully. Here are the detailed steps to starting a greenhouse for these insects.

Choose The Appropriate Location

Butterflies thrive in certain environments, so the right spot can help you attract them easily. These insects prefer a bright sunny spot with a bit of shade during the hottest time of the day.

The sheltered area allows the butterflies to stay cool while resting. This ideal location must also be protected from the wind because it can make it difficult for these insects to fly.

A spot in the corner of the yard is most suitable for your greenhouse.

Build The Greenhouse

A butterfly greenhouse is built in the same way as standard greenhouses. The only difference is the contents and purpose of the space.

You may build a conservatory using recycled glass and a wooden base for mounting. Installing a fiberglass screen to a wooden frame will help you form a DIY greenhouse.

Another option is to hire a professional to build the room. This is preferable because the space will last for years to offer a better experience.

Place Butterfly-Attracting Plants

A butterfly greenhouse will only house these insects if they are attracted to the spot. You can use nectar-rich plants to bring butterflies to the greenhouse.

The best way to keep these insects in the greenhouse for longer is by placing attractive plants outside and inside the greenhouse.

It will allow the butterflies to sip on nectar throughout the day. You should use flower varieties native to your zone to attract local species naturally.

Butterfly bush, yarrow, marigold, coneflower, and petunia are some types that will ensure these insects remain in your greenhouse and help with flower blooms throughout the year.

Add Rocks To The Greenhouse

Butterflies love to bask in the sunlight to stay warm since they are cold-blooded insects. This is why you must place rocks in the greenhouse to offer them a good place to rest while sunbathing.

Large flat rocks are mainly suitable for resting, but stepping stones and stumps will also work. They should be placed in a spot that receives high sunlight during the morning.

Offer A Puddler

These beautiful insects do not require standing water for hydration because they get the liquid from flower nectar. However, a butterfly will require a puddler for moisturization.

A puddler is a basin you must fill with damp sand and soil to form a good mixture. You should ensure the basin does not contain standing water because these insects only prefer wet sand.

The damp soil offers essential minerals to the butterflies and attracts them. Because of this, a puddler is an important content of a good butterfly greenhouse.

Install Small Houses

You can install small houses in your butterfly greenhouse to offer a suitable resting place. This is mainly preferable for greenhouses with no sheltered spot.

The insects can use the small houses in winter to protect themselves from the cold weather. These houses also offer a safe space during windy conditions.

Place A Feeder

This is the final item you will need to start your butterfly greenhouse. Plant nectar is the primary source of nutrients for these beautiful insects, but sometimes it may not be enough.

To ensure your butterflies are well-fed, you must place feeders with homemade nectar in your greenhouse. You can make the solution by mixing equal parts of water and sugar.

Adding mashed fruits such as peaches to the mixture will also help hungry butterflies. You may also hang a feeder outside the butterfly greenhouse to attract local species.

Get The Butterflies

A butterfly greenhouse will be incomplete without these insects. Placing the earlier contents will attract local species naturally to your space and help you keep them in the greenhouse for longer.

If the naturally attracted insects do not stay for long, you can buy butterflies. Once a secure greenhouse is formed with already present insects, local species are more likely to visit.

You can get butterflies from farms that sell kits with mature butterflies and live caterpillars. The latter option will help you mature into these colored insects and are easier to raise in a greenhouse.

Do Butterfly Greenhouses Really Attract Butterflies?

Butterfly greenhouses can attract these insects only if the space meets the right conditions. These include ample sunlight, rocks, a puddler, feeder, and nectar-rich plants.

If these items are absent in your greenhouse, local species will not be attracted to your garden. The farm-bought butterflies are also likely to escape if the greenhouse lacks a favorable environment.

How To Keep Wasps Out Of Your Butterfly Greenhouses?

Wasps are prevalent in butterfly greenhouses because of the flowers that serve as good hosts. You can get rid of them by taking their nests down carefully.

It is also advisable to place plants with young larvae under mesh netting. This will allow easy maturation without the threat of wasps.

How To Care For A Butterfly Greenhouse?

Using chemicals such as herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers may seem a good idea, but you must avoid them. These items harm the insects and will make your greenhouse unsuitable for butterflies.

The best thing you can do is let the butterflies remain in the greenhouse under natural conditions. Another care tip is to refill the feeders daily to offer fresh nectar to the insects.

You must also allow the different plants to thrive instead of pruning them frequently. Pruning will reduce the resources inside the greenhouse that the butterflies need for survival.

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