BUTTERFLY HABITAT LEARNING GARDEN 2025
Richmond Garden Club applied to the City of Richmond for an environmental enhancement grant and was successful to create a butterfly habitat garden in Paulik Park close to the children's playground with the purpose of increasing the habitat of butterflies in the park and also to educate the community at large.
Creation of the garden took us over 7 months of hard work of soil preparation, planting, and adding signage. Over 50 different species of plants were added that would supply a full cycle of habitat for the butterflies — from host plants for larvae to nectar plants — allows butterflies to complete their life cycle in this little garden.
Surrounding the garden bed (created in the shape of a giant butterfly) are many host trees available for laying eggs. The cottonwood tree, prevalent close to the butterfly garden, is both host and nectar for the Western swallowtail butterfly!
Creation of the garden took us over 7 months of hard work of soil preparation, planting, and adding signage. Over 50 different species of plants were added that would supply a full cycle of habitat for the butterflies — from host plants for larvae to nectar plants — allows butterflies to complete their life cycle in this little garden.
Surrounding the garden bed (created in the shape of a giant butterfly) are many host trees available for laying eggs. The cottonwood tree, prevalent close to the butterfly garden, is both host and nectar for the Western swallowtail butterfly!
BUTTERFLY HABITAT LEARNING GARDEN PLANTS
Phlox paniculata ‘Glamour Girl’
Gaura lindheimeri ‘Pink Picotee’
Gaura lindheimeri ‘Siskiyo Pink”
Mimulus cardinalis
Echinacea ‘Canary Feathers’
Echinacea purpurea ‘Wild Berry’
Echinacea ‘White Perfection’
Echinacea ‘Sweet Fuschia’
Echinacea ‘Raspberry’
Echinacea ‘Pink Lemonade’
Asclepias speciosa
Asclepias incarnata ‘Soulmate’
Asclepias incarnata ‘Ice Ballet’
Asclepias incarnata ‘Cinderella’
Asclepias tuberosa ‘Gay Butterflies’
Asclepias tuberosa
Solidago ‘Little Lemon’
Achillea ‘Moonshine’
Penstemon ‘Goldfinger’
Lupine ‘West Country Masterpiece’
Nepeta ‘Prelude Blue’
Alcea rosea ‘Sunshine’
Alcea rosea ‘Queeny Purple’
Alcea rosea ‘Radiant Rose’
Alcea rosea ‘Polarstar’
Digitalis ‘Summer King Strawberry Foxglove’
Eryngium giganteum ‘Miss Willmott’s Ghost’
Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii ‘Goldblitz’
Helianthus annus ‘Music Box’
Helianthus annus ‘Junior’
Helianthus annus ‘Sunrich Gold’
These were added for other insects to enjoy:
Iberis sempervirens
Artemisia stelleriana ‘Boughton Silver’
Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Sonata Mix’
Dahlia ‘Mystic Dreamer’
Gaura lindheimeri ‘Pink Picotee’
Gaura lindheimeri ‘Siskiyo Pink”
Mimulus cardinalis
Echinacea ‘Canary Feathers’
Echinacea purpurea ‘Wild Berry’
Echinacea ‘White Perfection’
Echinacea ‘Sweet Fuschia’
Echinacea ‘Raspberry’
Echinacea ‘Pink Lemonade’
Asclepias speciosa
Asclepias incarnata ‘Soulmate’
Asclepias incarnata ‘Ice Ballet’
Asclepias incarnata ‘Cinderella’
Asclepias tuberosa ‘Gay Butterflies’
Asclepias tuberosa
Solidago ‘Little Lemon’
Achillea ‘Moonshine’
Penstemon ‘Goldfinger’
Lupine ‘West Country Masterpiece’
Nepeta ‘Prelude Blue’
Alcea rosea ‘Sunshine’
Alcea rosea ‘Queeny Purple’
Alcea rosea ‘Radiant Rose’
Alcea rosea ‘Polarstar’
Digitalis ‘Summer King Strawberry Foxglove’
Eryngium giganteum ‘Miss Willmott’s Ghost’
Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii ‘Goldblitz’
Helianthus annus ‘Music Box’
Helianthus annus ‘Junior’
Helianthus annus ‘Sunrich Gold’
These were added for other insects to enjoy:
Iberis sempervirens
Artemisia stelleriana ‘Boughton Silver’
Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Sonata Mix’
Dahlia ‘Mystic Dreamer’
Photos (Wikimedia Commons) of some of our plants in the butterfly garden
Common Butterflies in Paulik Park
Our artist for the butterfly project, Visnja Gasparic Vojvodic, is a well-known photographer and a proud member of Richmond Garden Club.
Thank you for the help from Kootenay Native Plant Society who gave us permission to use their language (lightly adapted) for our own signage. Grace Mak ([email protected]) kindly created and donated the graphic design for our beautiful sign.
Thank you to local Richmond businesses for their support on creating the permanent structures and signage for our garden! Custom Ornamental Iron Works Ltd and Uno Digital Screen Press Ltd.