Butterfly Garden
The butterfly garden at Sugar Land Memorial Park was created in 2016 and is filled with nectar-rich plants that attract and feed butterflies and other pollinators. Insects such as bees, butterflies, bats, hummingbirds and certain birds also pollinate the plants within the garden.
Most of the plants in our butterfly garden are native to Texas and tolerate hot, drought-like summer conditions well. Milkweed and Turk’s Cap are prominent features of the garden, as well as American beautyberry and scarlet sage.
Monarchs will only lay eggs on milkweed. When they hatch and become caterpillars, they only eat milkweed leaves. Milkweed contains toxins that the caterpillars accumulate in their bodies. These toxins make adult butterflies taste unpleasant, and would-be predators know not to eat them.
At the opposite end of the garden, flame acanthus attracts hummingbirds to its flowers because of their tube-like shape and bright red color. The trees in the garden are Texas redbud, which bloom in the spring and draw all types of pollinators.
Pollinators feed on a plant’s pollen, nectar and sometimes the flowers themselves. While visiting the flowers, pollen is transferred from the male to the female parts of the flowers. This ensures that a plant will reproduce and bear fruit and seeds.
Thanks to student volunteers and scouts, the Butterfly Garden at Sugar Land Memorial Park was recently expanded by approximately 850 square feet in Fall 2022.
An additional Butterfly Garden is located outside of Sugar Land City Hall Annex, and there are pollinator meadows at Brazos River Park.
