Black Knight Butterfly Bush

Light Needs

Full Sun

(At Least 6 Hours Of Direct Sunlight)

Mature Height

8-10 Feet

Mature Spread

4-6 Feet

Growing Zones

5 to 9

Loaded with large summer flowers, Black Knight Butterfly Bush (Buddleja davidii) should hold a special spot in your landscape. The shrub grows to a height of nearly 8 feet and almost 6 feet around. It's an easy-care addition to low-water, Mediterranean, cottage or natural garden styles. Each spring, rains bring rapid growth to butterfly bushes. Black Knight's long arching stems cascade downward, and the tips are filled with the large, cone-shaped flowers that average 4 to 10 inches long.

The large purple flowers of Black Knight Butterfly Bush actually are made up of many tiny deep purple blooms, each perfect for hummingbirds and butterflies gathering sweet nectar. The flowers are fragrant for humans to enjoy, too. Black Knight continues blooming throughout summer and into early fall. Deer and rabbits leave butterfly bushes alone. The drought-tolerant shrub comes back year after year in zones 5 through 9.

Black Knight Butterfly Bush Care

Black Knight Butterfly Bush is an easy shrub to grow, so it's a winner in most landscapes. Choose a sunny spot and soil that drains well; the shrub performs best with a little afternoon shade in hotter regions of zones 8 and 9. Be sure to plant your butterfly bush so the crown is just above the soil level once you water at the base. Cut the butterfly bush stems down to a few feet above the ground each spring when new growth appears at the bottom of the plant. There is no need to deadhead this beauty, but you can cut the flowers for arrangements.

Black Knight Butterfly Bush Spacing

Plant a colorful cascading border with several Black Knight Butterfly Bush for a butterfly gathering place in your landscape. Space the shrubs 5 to 6 feet apart from center to center to give them room to grow to full size.