Grow Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia) for Butterflies!
Tithonia is one of my favorite nectar plants. It attracts many of the Swallowtails and other medium to large butterflies. Tithonia is one of those plants that is in my butterfly garden every summer!
Care of a Mexican Sunflower Plant
Tithonia is a fast growing annual and will bloom all summer until frost. It is a beautiful bright-orange daisy-like flower that grows to be about 5-8 feet tall. It loves full sun and will tolerate drought and low-fertility soils pretty well. In fact, too much fertilizer will create huge green plants with no blooms. They need to be planted after all danger of frost. Plant them with wind protection if you can, otherwise you may need to stake them.
I always plant mine along one protected side of our deck (which is about 2-3 ft off the ground). When they reach their full height I can look at the tops of them when standing on the deck and get a great close-up view of the butterflies as they visit (and some fun photos too)!
Varieties of Tithonia Rotundifolia
The most popular varieties are the tall “Torch” which is the beautiful orange flower seen in the pictures on this page. Also popular is the dwarf variety called Fiesta Del Sol. I have planted Torch for several years with great success.
I tried Fiesta Del Sol one year and it did not grow as well in my garden. The tall Torch attracted all the butterflies. However, many other people in forums and blogs have said that Fiesta Del Sol has grown wonderfully for them and has been butterfly magnet just as Torch is known for.
You can also find some lighter orange and yellow varieties but they are not as popular. Most people seem to love and comment on the fiery rich red-orange of Torch over the other colors. I love the radiance of these flowers in my garden.
Propagation – How to Start from Seed
Mexican sunflower is propagated by seed. You can start them indoors several weeks before your last frost. They are a warm weather plant so if they are direct sowed it must be after the last frost. They can be grown in zones 4-10 but in zone 4 you will have to start indoors.
For germination just barely press the seed into soil. Light aids in their germination. Keep the soil moist. They should germinate in about 7-21 days. When ready to plant outdoors, space them about 2 1/2 to 4 feet apart.
Attractive for Large Butterflies
All of the pictures on this page are from my garden. As you can see, Tithonia attracts a variety of medium to large butterflies. The Giant Swallowtails also like it. This nectar plant is almost always listed in top nectar plants for butterflies so you may want to give this one a try!