{"id":64177,"date":"2025-08-15T03:00:46","date_gmt":"2025-08-15T07:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?p=64177"},"modified":"2025-08-15T11:48:50","modified_gmt":"2025-08-15T15:48:50","slug":"butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/","title":{"rendered":"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Caterpillar garden design goes beyond planting nectar-rich flowers for adult butterflies. Like honeybees, many moth and butterfly species face habitat loss and pesticide exposure, threatening their survival. And, like bees, these insects are essential pollinators. To help them thrive, more gardeners are turning to the concept of a caterpillar garden\u2014planting specific host plants that sustain every life stage, from egg to caterpillar to winged adult.<\/p>\n<p>These more aptly named \u201ccaterpillar gardeners&#8221; have broadened their perspective to include the specific host plants required to support <em>every<\/em> life stage\u2014from egg to caterpillar to glorious, winged adult. And it&#8217;s about time. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service currently lists <a href=\"https:\/\/ecos.fws.gov\/ecp0\/reports\/ad-hoc-species-report?kingdom=I&amp;status=E&amp;status=T&amp;status=EmE&amp;status=EmT&amp;status=SAE&amp;status=SAT&amp;mapstatus=1&amp;fleadreg=on&amp;fstatus=on&amp;finvpop=on&amp;header=Listed+Invertebrate+Animals\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">more than 30 butterflies, moths and skippers<\/a> as threatened or endangered. The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation has <a href=\"https:\/\/xerces.org\/red-list-of-butterflies-and-moths\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">red-listed<\/a> many others. Fortunately, if you reintroduce the right native host plants for butterflies in your area, egg-laying females invariably will discover them.<\/p>\n<h2>How to Start a Caterpillar Garden<\/h2>\n<p>If you have a butterfly garden that&#8217;s heavy on nectar plants, you need only intersperse a few new larval host plants such as parsley and rue. Of course, deciding just <em>what<\/em> to plant depends on your location and growing conditions as well as which species you&#8217;d most like to attract. Some suggestions to get you thinking like a true caterpillar gardener follow.<\/p>\n<p>To truly welcome <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/4-common-caterpillars-and-what-they-mean-to-your-garden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">caterpillars<\/a>, you might also need to welcome some \u201cweeds.\u201d That means avoiding herbicides and pesticides and raising the deck on your lawn mower to allow clover, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/foraging-violets-making-syrup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">violets<\/a> and other volunteer plants to flourish. Do this, and you&#8217;ll get loads of interesting caterpillars and, yes, more butterflies, too.<\/p>\n<h2>Caterpillar Garden Host Plants You Might Call Weeds<\/h2>\n<p>The larval stages of the great spangled fritillary and the regal fritillary happen to feed on wild violets. Caterpillars of the northern metalmark butterfly are supported by some types of ragwort and fleabane. Yellow thistle is the main host plant for the little metalmark. As for the Milbert\u2019s tortoiseshell butterfly? It deposits eggs on stinging nettle. Do you have patches of clover or alfalfa growing? You&#8217;re more likely to attract southern dogface butterflies.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_64227\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-64227\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-64227\" src=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs.jpg\" alt=\"butterflies caterpillars gardens eggs\" width=\"800\" height=\"646\" srcset=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs-446x360.jpg 446w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs-495x400.jpg 495w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs-310x250.jpg 310w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs-248x200.jpg 248w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174520\/row-of-caterpillar-butterfly-eggs.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-64227\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Susan Brackney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Also, by now you&#8217;ve probably heard about the need to re-establish native <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/milkweed-monarch-butterfliess-bees-best\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">milkweed<\/a> populations. Because milkweed is the only host plant for the embattled monarch butterfly (a caterpillar of which is pictured at the top of this post), growing several varieties of this valuable plant in your caterpillar garden can make a big difference. Just choose the best <a href=\"https:\/\/xerces.org\/milkweed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">milkweed types for your area<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Trees and Shrubs for a Caterpillar Garden<\/h2>\n<p>If you have room to include larger trees and shrubs, several attract egg-laying butterflies. For instance, hackberry trees support the unusual-looking American snout butterfly. Mourning cloaks are attracted to birches, cottonwoods, elms and willows, among others. The banded hairstreak lays its eggs on the leaves of ashes, oaks, hickories and walnut trees.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_64225\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-64225\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-64225\" src=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar.jpg\" alt=\"butterflies caterpillars spicebush swallowtail caterpillar\" width=\"800\" height=\"697\" srcset=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar-413x360.jpg 413w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar-459x400.jpg 459w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar-287x250.jpg 287w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar-230x200.jpg 230w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174052\/butterflies-gardens-spicebush-swallowtail-caterpillar.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-64225\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Susan Brackney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Several kinds of swallowtails are also attracted to trees and shrubs. For example, Eastern, tiger and spicebush swallowtail butterflies (shown above) lay their eggs on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/a-guide-to-foraging-for-medicinal-plants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">spicebushes<\/a>. They&#8217;re also drawn to aspen, tulip, sassafras and willow trees.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_64226\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-64226\" style=\"width: 800px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-64226\" src=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174320\/butterflies-gardens-eastern-black-swallowtail-caterpillar.jpg\" alt=\"butterflies caterpillars eastern black swallowtail caterpillar\" width=\"800\" height=\"461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174320\/butterflies-gardens-eastern-black-swallowtail-caterpillar-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174320\/butterflies-gardens-eastern-black-swallowtail-caterpillar-625x360.jpg 625w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174320\/butterflies-gardens-eastern-black-swallowtail-caterpillar-600x250.jpg 600w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174320\/butterflies-gardens-eastern-black-swallowtail-caterpillar-434x250.jpg 434w, https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/29174320\/butterflies-gardens-eastern-black-swallowtail-caterpillar.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-64226\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Susan Brackney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Paw paw trees play host to zebra swallowtail caterpillars. Other fruit trees, including apple, cherry and plum, serve as host plants for viceroy butterfly caterpillars. The dainty spring azure butterfly also uses some of these, along with maple trees as well as viburnum and blueberry bushes. Viburnum, highbush cranberry and snowberry bushes are just a few of the landscaping plants that can support hummingbird clearwing and snowberry clearwing moths.<\/p>\n<h2>Herbs and Flowers for Caterpillars<\/h2>\n<p>While bronze fennel, dill and parsley are essential hosts for black swallowtail butterfly caterpillars, giant swallowtails use rue as their host plant. To raise its young, the showy pipevine swallowtail butterfly depends on native pipevine species such as Dutchman\u2019s pipe.<\/p>\n<p>Love fall asters? Then you just might attract northern or pearl crescent butterflies. Can you grow passionflower? Its stunning vines support Gulf fritillary caterpillars.<\/p>\n<p>For their part, painted lady butterflies like mallows and hollyhocks. The rarer frosted elfin and Karner blue butterflies lay their eggs on wild lupines.<\/p>\n<p>There are, of course, hundreds of other plant-and-caterpillar combinations to explore. To help you get started, the <a href=\"https:\/\/butterflies.naba.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">North American Butterfly Association<\/a> offers <a href=\"https:\/\/nababutterfly.com\/regional-butterfly-garden-guides\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">regional garden guides<\/a> for many parts of the U.S. Each guide lists the top native and non-native \u201ccaterpillar food\u201d plants for individual regions as well as the common (and less common) butterflies that these gardeners can expect to attract.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, no matter <em>which<\/em> food plants you choose to include, plan to add copious amounts of them. You&#8217;ll learn the mark of any truly successful caterpillar garden\u2014be prepared to see your stands of dill, fennel and milkweed decimated as voracious caterpillars have their way with them.<\/p>\n<p>This article about cultivating a caterpillar garden was written for Hobby Farms magazine. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/subscribe-new\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Click here to subscribe.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Attracting butterflies is about more than nectar. Include host plants that support every life stage, from egg to caterpillar to winged adult.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":133238,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10458],"tags":[2267,1270,11548],"class_list":["post-64177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-farm-garden","tag-pollinator","tag-pollinator-flowers","tag-pollinator-garden"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v22.0 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage - Hobby Farms<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Caterpillar garden planting to attract and support butterflies and moths is important to boost pollinator populations. Learn how.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Caterpillar garden planting to attract and support butterflies and moths is important to boost pollinator populations. Learn how.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Hobby Farms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-08-15T07:00:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-08-15T15:48:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1707\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Susan Brackney\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@hobbyfarms\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Susan Brackney\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Susan Brackney\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0ba35a286638b782ac338f4fa1a1fed1\"},\"headline\":\"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-08-15T07:00:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-08-15T15:48:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\"},\"wordCount\":839,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"pollinator\",\"pollinator flowers\",\"pollinator garden\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Farm &amp; Garden\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\",\"name\":\"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage - Hobby Farms\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-08-15T07:00:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-08-15T15:48:50+00:00\",\"description\":\"Caterpillar garden planting to attract and support butterflies and moths is important to boost pollinator populations. Learn how.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"Monarch caterpillar eating plants in a caterpillar garden. Erik\/Adobe Stock\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/\",\"name\":\"Hobby Farms\",\"description\":\"Rural Living for Pleasure and Profit\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Hobby Farms\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png\",\"width\":586,\"height\":68,\"caption\":\"Hobby Farms\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/hobbyfarms\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0ba35a286638b782ac338f4fa1a1fed1\",\"name\":\"Susan Brackney\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/01215940\/Brackney_headshot_small-150x150.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/01215940\/Brackney_headshot_small-150x150.png\",\"caption\":\"Susan Brackney\"},\"description\":\"Susan Brackney is a freelance writer and author. She is a award-winning writer and author of several books. Susan is also a member of the American Society of Journalists.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.susanbrackney.com\/\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/brackneysusan\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/susan-brackney-bb279086\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/author\/susan-brackney\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage - Hobby Farms","description":"Caterpillar garden planting to attract and support butterflies and moths is important to boost pollinator populations. Learn how.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage","og_description":"Caterpillar garden planting to attract and support butterflies and moths is important to boost pollinator populations. Learn how.","og_url":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/","og_site_name":"Hobby Farms","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms","article_published_time":"2025-08-15T07:00:46+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-08-15T15:48:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2560,"height":1707,"url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Susan Brackney","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@hobbyfarms","twitter_site":"@hobbyfarms","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Susan Brackney","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/"},"author":{"name":"Susan Brackney","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0ba35a286638b782ac338f4fa1a1fed1"},"headline":"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage","datePublished":"2025-08-15T07:00:46+00:00","dateModified":"2025-08-15T15:48:50+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/"},"wordCount":839,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg","keywords":["pollinator","pollinator flowers","pollinator garden"],"articleSection":["Farm &amp; Garden"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/","url":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/","name":"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage - Hobby Farms","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-08-15T07:00:46+00:00","dateModified":"2025-08-15T15:48:50+00:00","description":"Caterpillar garden planting to attract and support butterflies and moths is important to boost pollinator populations. Learn how.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/caterpillar-garden-scaled.jpeg","width":2560,"height":1707,"caption":"Monarch caterpillar eating plants in a caterpillar garden. Erik\/Adobe Stock"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/admin.hobbyfarms.com\/butterflies-garden-plants-caterpillars-moths\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Caterpillar Garden: Plant to Support Every Butterfly Stage"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/","name":"Hobby Farms","description":"Rural Living for Pleasure and Profit","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#organization","name":"Hobby Farms","url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/00GPSuRp-logo.png","width":586,"height":68,"caption":"Hobby Farms"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/hobbyfarms","https:\/\/x.com\/hobbyfarms"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/0ba35a286638b782ac338f4fa1a1fed1","name":"Susan Brackney","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/01215940\/Brackney_headshot_small-150x150.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/img.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/01215940\/Brackney_headshot_small-150x150.png","caption":"Susan Brackney"},"description":"Susan Brackney is a freelance writer and author. She is a award-winning writer and author of several books. Susan is also a member of the American Society of Journalists.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.susanbrackney.com\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/brackneysusan\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/susan-brackney-bb279086\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/author\/susan-brackney\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64177"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":133240,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64177\/revisions\/133240"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}