That is so weird...just yesterday, I had read about 'Snow Flurry' Aster & am wondering where to get seeds!!! I have blue asters that should be blooming soon & the BFs just love them!
As far as the Shasta Daisies...never seen a single BF on mine...but BFs in different areas have different tastes!
Right now...I'm seeing a ton of Gray Hairstreaks, Hackberries & Monarchs nectaring in my yard. They are all over my Gregg's Bluemist Flowers, Tith, Red Zinnias & Tropical Milkweed! The wasps & bees are all over the the Frostweed & Joe Pye Weed...just not the BFs!

I am so happy you are noticing the wasps and bees too! I have been spending time looking at the Xerces Societies book on pollinators. Bees are in real trouble. I hadn't heard of Frostweed. I am going to have to try that one.
Cheers,
Elisabeth

Frostweed, or White Crownbeard, or Verbesina virginica, is a fascinating plant. I have read that the same phenomenon can occur with other Verbesinas, but I have yet to witness it with either V. encelioides or Golden Crownbeard, or V. alternifolia, or Wingstem. I'll keep watching, though. Seems as it is iffy on these species anyway. I attached a link to show you the frost ribbons this plant can produce after a freeze. It's not really frost, as the common name suggests, but the epidermis on the stems ruptures, and the water or tissues that oozes from the stem then freezes, creating these beautiful, amazing, intricate frozen ribbons. Quite a fascinating thing called Crystallofolia.

A perennial plant, some say it is hardy to zone 6a, and others say it's hardy to zone 5. USDA reports hardiness in states as far North as Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. It's worth at least trying to grow it that far North, for its value as a nectar plant and the fall show it offers, IMHO. I couldn't find any info on whether it blooms the first year from seed, but that was a cursory search, nothing in depth. If it does, then it could be grown as an annual in Northern states.

I plan to grow lots of annual nectar plant next year, including Golden Crownbeard, single flowering Zinnias, Cosmic Orange Cosmos, even tho it took over the garden last year, I'm missing it this year, more Verbena bonariensis. and lots of Tropical Milkweed, and Family Jewels milkweed. No new perennials.

Susan

Here is a link that might be useful: Verbesina virginica

Looks like a nice wish-list Butterflyman. Which one had the most butterflies on it when you were at the Botanical Garden?

From your list I have Purple Dome aster which just started blooming for me a few days ago. The butterflies are starting to thin out here so it's hard to tell whether it's a butterfly magnet. My Purple Domes are still very small since I just transplanted them this spring from an old one that was in the shade and wouldn't bloom. I've seen mature ones and they're gorgeous.

I also have Frosty Morn sedum. It's pretty but mine doesn't look as good as the one in your photo. It's in the shade but needs to be in the sun so the butterflies will go to it. (I need to quit planting stuff in the shade don't I)

Tops on my butterfly list is a Hop Tree.

Also thinking about trying the new Halo series hollyhocks. It says it attracts butterflies and hummingbirds on the description but that doesn't always mean much. T&M has seeds and also Swallowtail Garden Seeds. 'Halo Red' is very tempting.

I've got to quit expecting volunteers from my zinnias and cosmos. I had dozens of zinnias last year and only one or two volunteers this spring. Thank goodness I planted new seeds. I only had one cosmos volunteer and didn't plant any of those so it was lonely. : ( I have more birds than I used to and they get the seeds I guess. I've been trying to collect some from my Zowie Zinnias but the birds are eating them before they're dry so I'm not having much luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: alcea rosea 'Halo Red'

Currently I have nearly nothing blooming, had to do a total burn down of the lawn. It was over ran with dandelions, broadleaf weeds and thistles. We had to move to florida for 10 mo. for DH to retrain for his military career. From AGE(Aerospace Ground Equipment) to EOD(Explosive Ordinance Disposal) So... I've been planning my 2012 flower beds and veggie garden all season. I've two shoe boxes of seeds. Far too large a list to write out! Heh! Loads of butterfly attracting plants though. Totally intended that! Have to have them come, I just love them. :)

~Tina, who needs a larger yard!

Christie, that's a very pretty bloom on the Hollyhocks. I used to plant the old varieties, but never saw any butterflies on them. I know they are supposed to be a larval host plant for the Painted Ladies, but never saw any of those either.

My Aster oblongifolius blooms very late, almost too late for some of the butterflies. I have another aster that is not a native called Aster tartaricus 'Jindai' that the butterflies like and it blooms a lot earlier. It's blooming now. They both took a real beating from the heat and spider mites this year, so the foliage is ratty looking.

My problems is not with late blooming plants, but finding nectar plants that bloom in early spring. I have to rely on the weeds like Dandelion and Henbit, which I allow to grow for that purpose.

Susan

I'd rather add things to the old "New Plants for 2009" thread so I could keep my plant lists together but that thread won't show up on the list anymore so I figured I'd post on this thread.

This is what I ordered this weekend (host plant followed by butterfly that uses it):

Antennaria plantaginifolia - American Lady
Aster laevis - Pearl Crescent
Cassia fasciculata - Cloudless Sulphur and Little Sulphur
Cassia hebercarpa - Sleepy Orange, Grey Hairstreak, and Cloudless Sulphur
Celtis tenuifolia - American Snout, Hackberry, and other leps I don't remember
Desmodium sessilifolium - Hoary Edge, Southern and Northern Cloudy Wing
Leersia oryzoides - Least Skipper and Peck's Skipper
Panicum virgatum - Tawny-edged Skipper, Leonard's Skipper, and Least Skipper
Passiflora lutea - Variegated Fritillary
Senecio obovatus - Northern Metalmark
Tridens flavus - Common Wood Nymph

Also ended up getting a New Jersey Tea bush because I needed more on one order. I was thinking something here would eat it but Mottled Dusky Wing is all I see in my Ohio butterflies book and I'm not likely to get those in my neighborhood.

One thing I could not find was Potentilla canadensis (Canada/dwarf cinquefoil). It is the hostplant for the Grizzled Skipper in Ohio. I believe I caught one last year. They are pretty rare so I was very interested in seeing whether I could attract some more. Unfortunately, I could not find any nursery or seed supplier that had that cinquefoil. I did find that various witches were willing to sell me ground up leaves from the plants. I also found that I could get some free witchcraft lessons but I passed.

KC

Here is a link that might be useful: New Plants for 2009