A butterfly habitat requires plants from three basic groups. The first is 'Host Plants', the second is 'Nectar Plants'.

The third small group of plants are 'minerals'. They provide the resources for reproduction and are very important.

The habitat works best with both sunny and shady areas, as butterflies love sunshine and also like to rest in the shade, just as we do.

Almost always, a butterfly habitat easily fits into existing landscape.

Choose only host plants for butterflies that are local to your area. Planting a host plant for butterflies found in Miami , for example, will not attract them to Tampa.

Each butterfly species lays eggs on a limited group of host plants, which the caterpillars feed on. For example, a butterfly that lays eggs on passion vine will never lay eggs on anything else. If the correct host plant for laying eggs is not available, butterflies will nectar (eat from their nectaring plant) and die without ever having laid eggs. This is the reason responsible butterfly breeders never ship butterflies to areas without naturally occurring host plants.

Butterflies have favorite nectar plants. Small butterflies require flowers that are simple and open flat. Larger butterflies have longer mouth parts and can nectar from flowers having tubular shapes.

Hummingbirds love many of the same nectar plants as do butterflies. Hummingbirds will also be attracted to your butterfly garden, if they are naturally found in your area.

"Plant 'em, and they will come," has been my experience!

My first garden was mostly nectar plants along the edge of a wooded area. It attracted many species that were naturally occurring. By adding the host plant, I now experience the entire life cycle of egg laying, caterpillar growing, chrysalis forming and butterfly hatching.

They tasted good!

The egg case provides the young caterpillar its first nutritious meal.

Ten days, generally. A bit less during the hot summer, and a bit more in the fall.

Some species, such as the Giant Swallowtail, will take up to three weeks, and many butterflies over winter in this stage.

In some cases, I have completely given up on a chrysalis, only to find it hatch two weeks to many months later.

Never give up on a chrysalis unless you can tell it has dried up or been ingested by a predator.

Helping,if you use proper rearing, raising and sterilizing techniques.

Consider that about one in every 100 eggs will mature to butterfly. For the avid butterfly enthusiast, rearing is most beneficial in order to have lots of butterflies in the garden.

However rearing without proper cleansing of equipment will spread disease and the pathogens that effect all stages of the life cycle. All equipment should be sterilized with a 20% bleach solution between every batch of caterpillars raised.

As professional breeders, we disinfect every few days.

This can be due to a disease, or a pathogen or even insufficient moisture in the air.

Indoor rearing requires a daily misting to keep the chrysalis from drying out.

Live butterflies can be used to make a special occasion an extraordinary occasion.

We would love to create your next centerpiece with a floral arrangement of butterfly flowers AND live butterflies.

Large displays with live butterflies in an entryway or focal area make a special decorative splash. Each display can then deliver an extra bonus if you incorporate a release of butterflies into the event or present the display to your featured guest to take home to release the next day.

Please note to schedule your release during the warm part of the day.

Not worms, but caterpillars.

Caterpillars eat and eat and eat until they are ready to transform into a chrysalis. The chrysalis transforms into the butterfly.

Fertilize in the spring after the danger of frost.

Continue to fertilize according to labeled directions until the onset of fall.

Remember that all fertilizer labels are based on an average temperature of 70 degrees. Our hot Florida summers will reduce the time span over which fertilizer lasts by as much as 30%.

This is a personal preference on many plants, but a rule to go by is to prune after the new growth is fully expanded and flushed out, in order to create fullness and more branching.

But, I'm going to break this rule in the next question.

For the gardener who is always out in the garden, your finger tips work best. Just pinch new leaves or buds as they come out in order to create two branches where there was only one. The tender growth pinches easily.

Or, for the time-crunched gardener like myself, shears work well and plants quickly re-grow!

In the spring, perform a general cleaning of dead wood, and cut back to shape the plants for new growth.

Periodically prune during the growing season to produce full plants.

Here is a basic guide:

Caterpillars must feed on fresh host plant daily. They must not be older growth or dry.

Once a caterpillar begins eating on a plant, it must remain eating the same plant since the caterpillar's digestive system is too simple to change diets. For example, once started on Amethyst Passion Vine, the caterpillar will not change to Corky Stem Passion Vine.

The basic rule is: outdoors during the warm part of the day.

Choose what works best for you: When you are pronounced wed, when you exit the building, when you walk the isle, when you toast, when you kiss, when you have the first dance, whenever you like!

How much work in the garden do you enjoy?

An area specifically devoted to butterflies should be 10 ft. x 20 ft. or so.

Some prefer to incorporate a butterfly area all over a yard, which creates the habitat within view from where one usually sits indoors or easily glancing out of windows.

If you have a patio, then create the butterfly garden where you will see it from your favorite chair.

You need to start with at least one host plant and several nectar plants.

If you are like most of us, this is just the beginning of a wonderful, colorful garden. Most butterfly aficionados are like kids in a candy shop — the more there is, the sweeter it is!