Coastal Woody Plants Supporting Butterfly & Moth Diversity 

Below is a selection of woody plants that have landscaping value and support a large diversity of butterflies and moths. This list is inspired by a graph of woody plant genera compiled by Doug Tallamy and Kimberly Shropsire in “Bringing Nature Home” that ranks plants by their ability to support lepidoptera species. The number by each genera refers to the diversity of butterflies and moths supported by that group of plants. Coastal WildScapes has tailored the list to include plants specific to our coastal habitats.

Oak (Quercus: 534)

White Oak (Quercus alba)
Bluff Oak (Quercus austrina)
Southern Red Oak (Quercus falcata)
Overcup Oak (Quercus lyrata)
Swamp Chestnut Oak (Quercus michauxii)
Cherrybark Oak (Quercus pagoda)
Shumard Oak (Quercus shumardii)
Live Oak (Quercus virginiana)

Willow (Salix: 456)

Carolina Willow (Salix caroliniana)
Black Willow (Salix nigra)

Cherry & Plum (Prunus: 456)

Chickasaw Plum (Prunus angustifolia)
Carolina Cherry (Prunus caroliniana)
Black Cherry (Prunus serotina)

Birch (Betula: 413)

River Birch (Betula nigra)

Poplar (Populus: 368)

Swamp Cottonwood (Populus heterophylla)

Crab apple (Malus: 311)

Southern Crab Apple (Malus angustifolia)

Blueberry (Vaccinium: 288)

Sparkleberry (Vaccinium arboreum)
Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum)
Deerberry (Vaccinium stamineum)

Maple (Acer: 285)

Red Maple(Acer rubrum)

Elm (Ulmus: 213)

American Elm (Ulmus americana)

Pine (Pinus: 203)

Yellow Slash Pine (Pinus elliottii)
Spruce Pine (Pinus glabra)
Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris)
Pond Pine (Pinus serotina)

Hickory (Carya: 200)

Mockernut Hickory (Carya tomentosa)
Pignut Hickory (Carya glabra)

Hawthorn (Crataegus: 159)

Mayhaw (Crataegus aestivalis)
Parsley Hawthorn (Crataegus marshallii)

Alder (Alnus: 156)

Smooth Alder (Alnus serrulata)

Ash (Fraxinus: 150)

Carolina Ash (Fraxinus caroliniana)
Green Ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica)

Basswood (Tilia: 150)

Basswood (Tilia americana)

Beech (Fagus: 126)

American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)

Chestnut (Castanea: 125)

Coastal Chinquapin (Castanea alnifolia)