How to Germinate a Butterfly Bush

Attractive flowers and ease of maintenance are some of the charms offered by the butterfly bush (buddleja). This large shrub attracts butterflies, produces showy and colorful flower spikes, and is extremely vigorous. The bush is so vigorous that it is considered a noxious weed in some parts of the United States, including Oregon and Washington state. But its colorful cultivars, exhibiting flowers in reds, oranges and blues, among others, and its graceful arching branches make it a desirable specimen for a landscape. Reaching up to 15 feet tall, the deciduous plant is vigorous and produces numerous seeds early in its life. Keep in mind that this plant is likely to regrow from seeds and stumps even after it is cut back or removed.

Instructions

- 1
  Collect seeds from mature plants. Seeds are often produced in the shrub's first year, after flowering late in the year, and remain viable in the soil for three to five years. The smalled, winged seeds number as many as 40,000 in each flower spike.
- 2
  Place seeds in well-drained soil in full sun at or just below the soil surface. Seeds require light exposure to grow and will not germinate in the dark, although germination rate is usually high. In a study published in the journal HortTechnology, scientists found that the butterfly bush cultivars Banho Blue and Moonlight had the highest germination rates, at 63 to 74 percent.
- 3
  Provide moderate water to retain soil moisture, but do not over water as the plant is drought tolerant. The butterfly bush is a hardy plant and will thrive in low-nutrient soil and can even grow in pavement cracks. Fertilizer is not required for vigorous growth.

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