Buddleia Care Guide

How to grow buddleia in your garden and maintain it each year

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Why do bees like Buddleia?

Buddleia is a very attractive plant to bees and butterflies, it’s sometimes called ‘butterfly bush’ for this reason. This is due to its clusters of nectar rich flowers that have a strong and pleasant smell. The scent of buddleia is honey like and sweet smelling, and it blooms in shades of pinks and purples that stand out to a bee’s eye due to their violet tones. The sweet smell attracts many pollinators, so if you have room in your garden for this large flowering shrub, they can be very beneficial.

Types of Buddleia

There are many types of buddleia, all of which can add colour and much needed nectar for pollinators in your garden. Our favourites include Buddleja davidii ‘Ile de France’, and they have a dark purple shade of flower that the bees particularly enjoy, and also Buddleja davidii ‘Buzz Sky Blue’, which grow in a lovely blue shade and are typically more compact that other varieties, so won’t need as much harsh pruning.

When & where to plant Buddleia

Buddleia are best plant in the late spring to early summer, between May and September. They will flower well throughout the mid to late summer, so June is often a good month for plating so they have time to settle in just before they flower.

Buddleia loves the sun and need a spot in full sun to take hold. They require free draining soil, but need some moisture, so make sure the soil doesn’t dry out too much during spells of hot weather. If you have clay soil in your garden, add some grit to the bottom of the hole when planting to help it drain a little better.

Summer Deadheading

You can deadhead the buddleia throughout the summer when the flowers turn brown as needed to encourage more flowers to grow – snip the brown flowers about an inch or two below the base of the flower, so that that stem can grow new flowers.

How to maintain your Buddleia

Buddleia grows quickly and needs little maintenance – however they can also grow very large, and out-compete other plants for space, so ensure they have enough room to grow around them and they may need pruning and cutting back once a year to stop them getting too large. It is best to prune the buddleia between February and April, and a harsh prune is best in order to control the size of the plant for the coming summer. Cut all the dead woody branches and shape the bush as needed. Buddleia are tough plants and will grow back well even after a harsh pruning.

This is why we recommend buddleia be grown at the back of the garden, or along the fence line of your garden, so that they don’t take up too much room in your borders. They can also make a great addition to a bee friendly hedge, or to provide a little garden privacy, as they can grow tall enough to obscure the view into your garden where needed.

Buddleia are best for larger gardens due to their size, but hey can also work well in medium gardens when pruned back to control their growth.

Are Buddleia an Invasive Species?

Buddleia are classed as an invasive species in the UK, and though harmless, it does spread incredibly easily, which is why it can often be spotted growing on train tracks or on vacant properties. They are low maintenance as they will grow well in any sunny spot that isn’t water-logged. But it is worth thoroughly cutting back the buddleia to control its size and checking if it hasn’t seeded anywhere else in the garden.

Summary

Large floral and sweet smelling, Buddleia are wonderful fragrant additions to large gardens. They’re tough and low maintenance and can grow extremely well provided they get enough sun, and hopefully throughout the summer you will notice more and more bees and butterflies frequenting your Buddleia and enjoying the nectar rich flowers.

Find more bee-friendly plant care guides here.