8 Dwarf Butterfly Trees to Discover!

A dwarf red buddleia (or nearly): ‘Miss Ruby’

The compact size of this Buddleia ‘Miss Ruby’ allows it to be grown in containers and even pots. This is fortunate, as this cultivar from Dr Dennis Werner in 2003 has been awarded the Garden Merit by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It quickly forms a small bush up to 1.20 m tall. From June to autumn, it continuously delights us with flowers in a unique colour for this genus, a bright pink almost red. These richly coloured spikes stand out beautifully against medium green foliage with silver undersides.

It is hardy down to -9.5°C (Zone 8b) and will appreciate a light mulch in its first few years.

It will find its place in a shrub or perennial border and will also make a striking impact when planted in a container on a sunny terrace or balcony. Its summer flowering harmonises with dark foliage such as that of Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Summer Wine’, or the light green of a Heuchera ‘Sweet Tart’ for a more contrasting colour play. In a pink composition, it will also be perfect alongside Phlox paniculata ‘Septemberglut’.

Dwarf Buddleia ‘Miss Ruby’

A beautiful dwarf blue buddleia: 'Nanho Blue'

This dwarf variety of the Butterfly Tree is essential for small spaces. The Buddleia davidii ‘Nanho Blue’ forms a lovely gracefully arching bush about 1.5 m tall in all directions. From June to October, it displays spikes of flowers 15 cm long in a beautiful lavender blue colour against silvery grey foliage with a fuzzy grey underside. They attract butterflies with their sweet fragrance.

This is a very hardy bush capable of withstanding negative temperatures down to -29°C (Zone 5).

You can plant it in a large pot, in a small hedge, or at the back of a perennial border. Its blue-lilac flower spikes will resonate with shades of blue alongside hardy geraniums, lavenders, or an artemisia ‘Powis Castle’.

This butterfly tree is also available in a white version with the Buddleia davidii ‘Nanho White’!

Buddleia davidii ‘Nanho Blue’

A fragrant Buddleia: 'Nanho Purple'

About 1.5 m tall and 1.5 m wide, the Buddleia davidii ‘Nanho Purple’ is a splendid dwarf variety of butterfly tree that stands out for its arching branches, giving it a lovely bushy and trailing habit. Fast-growing, it generously blooms from June to October with very dense panicles of intense purple flowers, highlighted by an orange-red eye. They gracefully emerge from beautiful silver-green foliage. These spikes emit a sweet fragrance, highly appreciated by pollinating insects.

Its modest size makes it particularly suitable for small spaces and the back of a perennial border. It also adapts perfectly to cultivation in large pots.

For a colourful summer display, you can pair it with the Echinacea purpurea ‘Little Magnus’, a dwarf variety of coneflower with large solitary purple-pink flowers, also well-suited for pot cultivation and equally melliferous!

Buddleia davidii ‘Nanho Purple’

Simple and elegant: Buddleia 'White Chip'

If you don’t have a Buddleia in your garden because space is limited or you only have a simple sunny balcony, the Buddleja ‘White Chip’ is perfect for you! With its height of 90cm and its bristly, rounded silhouette, it stands out in small spaces. This dwarf bush, with its rapid growth and beautiful silvery foliage, forms a generous and well-proportioned bush. From July to September, it displays an abundant and long flowering in spikes of pure white that renew throughout the summer without interruption. It exudes a natural elegance in its simplicity.

Hardy down to -9.5°C (Zone 8b), a good mulch at the base of the shrub will help keep its roots warm in winter.

It can be grown both in pots and in the ground to enhance a natural shrub border alongside the Ceanothus ‘Skylark’ or a Lagerstroemia indica ‘Violacea’. In pots, pair it with hardy geraniums.

Buddleja ‘White Chip’

Perfect in containers: Buddleia ‘Lo & Behold® Pink Micro Chip’

The Buddleia ‘Pink Micro Chip’ is the smallest of the American Lo & Behold® series. Very compact, its size does not exceed 55 cm in all directions. With its prostrate appearance, it is the most suitable variety for decorating planters, where it forms an adorable flowering cushion. Earlier than its larger siblings, it blooms for almost 5 months, from June to October, in shades of pink-mauve.

Hardy down to -9.5°C (Zone 8b), it enjoys sunny, not too windy locations and a protective mulch in winter, in the harshest regions.

This miniature gem will thrive in a pot on the terrace or balcony, although it is perfectly capable of integrating into borders, rockeries, as groundcover, or to enhance perennial plant beds.

It can be paired, for example, with groundcover roses, such as the Mirato® Rose.

Buddleia Lo & Behold® ‘Pink Micro Chip’

An unusual habit: Buddleia x davidii ‘Lilac Chip’

Here is a dwarf variety with a prostrate habit, wider than it is tall. ‘Lilac Chip’ displays an unusual habit for the genus as it is creeping rather than bushy like the classic varieties. It forms a very low bush with a bristly, rounded habit of barely 70 cm in height. Its beautiful silvery foliage is adorned from July to September with countless spikes of fragrant lilac flowers with an orange heart.

Hardy down to -23.5°C (Zone 6a), it acclimatises in all regions, both in the ground and in pots.

It is ideal for enhancing your terrace and will add flair and originality to summer containers. You can showcase this unusual buddleia by planting it at the edge or in a rockery in full sun. It will form a lovely duo with a Delphinium Pacific ‘Black Knight’ or creeping ceanothus.

Buddleia x davidii ‘Lilac Chip’

A dome of flowers: Buddleia ‘Bloomtastic Dreaming Lavender’

In the same spirit, the Buddleia Bloomtastic ‘Dreaming Lavender’ is another variety of dwarf butterfly tree that stands out for its original creeping habit. This hybrid variety from the ‘Dreaming’ series, introduced in 2011, forms a wide, low dome that will not exceed 50 cm in height with a spread of 1.50 m. It offers beautiful dense foliage of a slightly greyish green that persists on the bush in mild climates. Throughout the summer, continuously from June-July to October-November, the branches arch under abundant fragrant blue-violet flower spikes.

This very hardy shrub, down to -23.5°C (Zone 6a), will not require winter protection and can remain outdoors throughout the winter.

This weeping butterfly tree will look great in a small garden, at the front of borders, along a path, or above a low wall, as well as in a pot. Pair it with groundcover roses (rose ‘Rose du Soleil’ for example), and nepeta, to ensure long months of flowering!

Buddleia Bloomtastic ‘Dreaming Lavender’

An exceptional floribundity: Buddleia davidii ‘Sophie’

Another very compact variety that will make a statement when space is limited! The Buddleia davidii ‘Sophie’ boasts all the qualities: a mini yet well-groomed appearance and exceptional floribundity. Very elegant, it forms a sphere with beautifully arching branches, not exceeding 60 cm in height and 80 cm in width. This small variety is particularly well-suited for pot cultivation. Its deciduous foliage is light green, turning silver in autumn, and is the site of an uninterrupted flowering from April to September. Its long, fragrant mauve clusters are wide and very dense.

Infinitely hardy down to -29°C (Zone 5), it will spend the winter outdoors without a hitch.

It will be sensational for flowering a corner of the house or balcony, or as a flowering border in a small garden. Pair it with the white flowers of a Dianthus plumarius, the violet hues of a Buenos Aires verbena, and the grey and silver foliage of an Artemisia arborescens ‘Little Mice’, for example.

Buddleia davidii ‘Sophie’