Hi, I am a newbie to this site and to BF gardening & am enjoying reading everyone's postings. I am amazed at how knowledgeable everyone is about butterfly gardening!!

Am looking for suggestions for LONG-BLOOMING, heat tolerant, nectar sources that will do well in containers that will sit on the brick steps of my townhouse in Northern Va (zone 7).

I hope to lure as many different types of Northern Virginia butterflies as possible to our suburban townhouse.

I have already planted Buddleias -- 'white ball' and 'black knight' -- in really big containers in the driveway, and want to do several more smaller containers for our brick front steps -- as well as one hanging basket.

Are Calibrachoa -- million bells -- good? How about Eupatorium coelestinum -- mistflower?

I need flowers that are powerful attractants and will bloom for a long time, since I have so little space. THANK YOU FOR ANY SUGGESTIONS YOU can provide!!! I am also planning to do some Verbena Homestead purple and Vigna Caracalla -- climbing shell plant. I always do parsley, dill, and fennel in containers, too for the cats.

I seemed to have NO LUCK attracting Bflies last year with pastel pink verbenas, Heliotropium arborescens 'fragrant delight,' and pink petunias. No one else in my 'hood has a garden. -- michaluna