What is Poisonous for Butterflies

Azalea

Azalea is a beautiful flowering shrub that can be poisonous to butterflies, especially caterpillars. The leaves, flowers and bark contain toxins that are dangerous to insects. Be careful to plant this plant in a section of your garden that isn’t easily accessible to butterflies and avoid planting it altogether if you have young children or pets. But azalea isn’t the only plant on this list that can be poisonous to humans as well.

Black Cohosh

Black cohosh is a flowering shrub with a long history of medicinal uses by Native Americans. While black cohosh can be used in humans to treat certain medical issues, it can be very poisonous to butterflies. Adult butterflies are able to feed on the leaves, but the toxins in black cohosh can be very harmful to caterpillars. If you have small children or pets that like to eat plants, it’s best to keep black cohosh out of your garden.

Bleeding Heart

Bleeding heart is a beautiful flowering perennial that can be found growing wild in many parts of the world. The flowers of this plant are pink or red and stand out from a distance, making it a popular choice for gardens. While bleeding heart isn’t poisonous to butterflies, the leaves are toxic and should be avoided. Bleeding heart isn’t a common choice for gardens because of this and it can be difficult to find at nurseries.

Baneberry

Baneberry is a flowering plant that is commonly used in gardens. It can grow as high as 4 feet tall and produces pink or white flowers in the spring. While the flowers of this plant are beautiful, it’s the roots that are poisonous. Baneberry is commonly used in gardens and is a great shrub to plant along the edge of a path, so it’s important to keep it away from children and pets. Baneberry, like azalea, is also poisonous to humans.

Foxglove

Foxglove is a flowering plant that is commonly used to fill in bare patches in a garden. Foxglove grows up to 3 feet tall and produces beautiful pink flowers in the fall. While the flowers of this plant are stunning and the leaves can be used in teas, it’s the roots that are poisonous. Foxglove is poisonous to both humans and butterflies, so it’s important to keep it away from young children and pets. In addition to being poisonous, foxglove also attracts bees. Unfortunately, this can be bad for bees if they are exposed to the toxins in foxglove.

Indian Hemp

Indian hemp is a flowering plant that is commonly used in gardens. It can grow as tall as 6 feet, producing small white flowers in the summer. While Indian hemp is poisonous, it is less harmful to humans than other plants on this list. This is because humans usually don’t consume it. Indian hemp is commonly used in gardens as an ornamental plant, but it’s important to keep it away from children and pets because it can be harmful if they come into contact with it.

Oleander

Oleander is a flowering shrub that is commonly used in gardens. It can grow as tall as 8 feet, producing beautiful pink or red flowers in the spring and summer. While oleander is a beautiful flowering plant, the leaves, flowers and roots are poisonous. Oleander is very dangerous to humans and should be avoided at all costs. It’s important to keep this plant out of gardens with children or pets. Fortunately, oleander doesn’t attract many butterflies.

Rhododendron

Rhododendron is a flowering shrub that is commonly used in gardens as well as along trails. It can grow as tall as 12 feet, producing beautiful pink or white flowers in the spring and summer. Rhododendron is poisonous to both humans and insects, so it’s important to keep this plant away from children and pets. Luckily, rhododendron rarely attracts butterflies.

Witch Hazel

Witch hazel is a flowering shrub that is commonly used in gardens. It can grow as tall as 6 feet, producing beautiful yellow flowers in the late fall. While witch hazel isn’t poisonous to humans, it is harmful to insects. Witch hazel is commonly used to keep pests out of gardens, so it’s important to keep it away from butterflies. If you have a garden with witch hazel, consider replacing it with a flowering plant that butterflies will enjoy. Butterflies might enjoy the flowers of witch hazel, but they’ll be harmed by the toxins in the leaves.

Conclusion

Butterflies are beautiful creatures that can be enjoyed just about anywhere. While most butterflies are not poisonous, it’s important to avoid planting poisonous plants. Azalea, bleeding heart, baneberry, black cohosh, foxglove, Indian hemp, oleander, rhododendron, and witch hazel are all poisonous to insects. When choosing plants for your garden, be sure to avoid these species. You can attract many beautiful butterflies to your garden, as long as you avoid these poisonous plants. If you want to attract butterflies to your garden, avoid planting potential sources of poison like arum lily, azalea, baneberry, black cohosh, bleeding heart, cocklebur, common yew ( Taxus), foxglove ( Digitalis), Indian hemp ( Apocynum), oleander, rhododendron and witch hazel. If you already have these plants in your yard or garden and want to continue attracting butterflies without worrying about them eating something poisonous: keep them as a focal point in a hidden corner of your property where the adult butterflies cannot fly away from it.