A prime butterfly plant, the copper-bronze fronds of Smokey Bronze fennel send up tall branching stalks crowned by intricate yellow flowers that … If you grow parsley, dill, fennel, or carrots, you may encounter a beautifully striped, colorful caterpillar chomping on the foliage. Isn’t it incredible how a single plant can be host to such wildlife? Florence Fennel is grown for its bulbous stem, which can be eaten raw, grilled or baked. The No-Waste Vegetable Cookbook is my latest book. Swallowtail butterflies may even lay eggs and feed on your fennel plants. Fennel is known to attract bees, butterflies and birds. I love it. Plant in very well-drained soil and keep a close eye on young seedlings, which grow slowly at first – their unusual bronze color can make them easy to weed out by accident! What Butterflies Can I Attract to My Garden? October 11 at 7:42 pm. Florence fennel (Foeniculum vulgare var. Pests: Fennel is a member of the parsley family. In a modest neighborhood under the Sea-Tac flyway, Janice Peltier's nursery, Herban Renewal, sends bursts of color and exuberant foliage sprawling out to the parking strip. Fennel makes a good addition to butterfly gardens statewide when temperatures cool in fall and winter. Common Name: Fennel. Growing conditions: Full sun and moist, well-drained soil. It attracts beneficial insects and butterflies to the garden. Nov 13, 2016 - My parsley is attracting butterflies; what?s going on? Lean or tie the stake to the plant's upper portion for balance. Fennel is not only tasty in salads and other dishes but is a delicacy to growing swallowtail caterpillars. Similar in taste to licorice, it’s especially common in fish dishes. Sweet Fennel with a Swallowtail Caterpillar. I'd also say it's definitely worth growing herb fennel too - it's very graceful in flower and as well as butterflies the hoverflies love it." Several years ago, a lady from California was visiting and when she saw all the fennel growing in our garden, she says, “you need to weed that out. My Fennel is growing really well again this year. Attractive butterflies, such as the old-world swallowtail and the anise swallowtail butterfly, use fennel as a plant food. Choose a container at least 12 inches deep; fennel forms a taproot so the container must be deep enough for the root. One of the most amazing things about bronze fennel is that it is a host plant for swallowtail butterflies. Nectar plants provide food for adult butterflies and host plants provide food for butterfly larvae and a place for butterflies to lay their eggs. Fennel & Dill. Dill is one of a very few known plants that will successfully grow near fennel. Latin Name: Foeniculum vulgare. Fennel is a Mediterranean plant that has been introduced to the U.S. Over many years, it has naturalized in our area. Cons of Growing Florence Fennel. Host plant to Black Swallowtail and Anise Swallowtail. Fennel is a popular vegetable for many gardeners because it has such a distinctive flavor. The feathery, yellow-green foliage and tall stature are attractive in informal landscapes. Herbaceous perennial. Fennel is only beneficial to dill, and in fact is detrimental to almost every other plant species. When growing it as a host plant, follow the instructions for carrots, above. Susie Merry Johnson liked this on Facebook. It has pretty yellow flowers that bloom in July and August in umbels, small clusters that radiate from a single area on the stalk. I didn't know it liked to be grown alone so need to keep an eye on nearby plants. Space plants about 1 foot apart. The branching feathery fronds crowned by intricate yellow flowers provide valuable nectar and pollen to a wide range of butterflies, ladybugs, lacewings and other beneficial insects. She suggests carefully moving caterpillars from plants you use and highly desire to those you grow specifically for the caterpillars. (aka Sweet Anise) This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Fennel is usually grown as an edible herb in the food garden, but it also is used in meadow or cottage gardens as a border plant. To my knowledge, only two caterpillars survived and I think only one successfully became a butterfly. When growing it as a host plant, follow the instructions for carrots, above. Also, it can inhibit the growth of tomatoes and beans, so avoid planting them near either of those crops. I grow Bronze Fennel in ground in part shade and in a huge pot in full sun and both plantings do well. When the dill-like flowers emerge, enjoy the visiting butterflies, and collect fennel pollen if you so desire. They have large appetites, so unless you planted enough for yourself and the butterflies, it can be a depressing sight to see your food crop munched down to its stems by an army of hungry caterpillars. Small populations can be removed by hand. Plant it in a sunny spot at the back of a border. Cantino fennel – Slow to go to seed. The herb tastes of aniseed and also produces aromatic seeds. Butterfly Host Plants Be prepared for heavy munching on your host plants! Winter growing: Fennel can be grown outdoors in mild winter regions. Rhondo fennel – A bulb-type fennel that produces a round bulb and matures early. Here's a hint: Fennel can self-seed aggressively in the garden; keep it under control by cutting off most of the flowers as they fade. Butterfly Nectar Plants. 4-5 feet tall. Title: Growing Herbs for Butterflies Author: Cindy Meredith Subject: Here are a few herbs that will attract butterflies to your garden. Clusters of tiny yellow flowers bloom in summer. Be sure to take its eventual size into account at planting time so it doesn't shade the rest of your vegetables. Fennel flowers are attractive to butterflies, and fennel is a host plant for the caterpillars of black swallowtail and anise swallowtail butterflies. It seems that almost all butterflies enjoy dill and fennel; as both a nectar source and a host plant. Bronze Fennel Plant (Foeniculum vulgare purpureum/rubrum) Quick Facts: Host plant to Black Swallowtail. Its eastern version is the black swallowtail butterfly, and while the butterflies look distinctly different, their caterpillars and chrysalises are nearly identical. Up to 6 feet tall, may need staking in windy areas. Set some plants aside that you don't mind being devoured. I planted a small six pack, thinking that it would be a one-season plant, in the same way that one might buy marigolds or basil. 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