• Photo of Buddleja davidii (Buddleja davidiis)

Plant Profile: Buddleja davidii

Taxonomy: Buddleja davidii

Names

Butterfly Bush, Orange-Eyed Butterfly Bush, Summer Lilac

  • Photo of Buddleja davidii (Buddleja davidiis)

Phonetic Spelling:bud-LAY-yah dah-VID-ee-eye

Genus:Buddleja

Species:davidi

Family:Scrophulariaceae

Buddleja davidii is a fast-growing, deciduous shrub that thrives in dry conditions and is originally from Asia. For optimal growth, it should be planted in full sunlight and in well-drained soil. This shrub is easy to transplant and produces flowers on new growth from summer until the first frost. To achieve the most vibrant blooms, it is recommended to prune the plant heavily in late winter. It serves as an excellent option for creating a summer-flowering shrub border or for mass planting. Additionally, it has a slight tolerance to salt.

**Insect, Disease, and Other Plant Issues:** During periods of drought, spider mites may pose a threat. In regions such as the Pacific Northwest, however, this plant can become invasive, so it may be wise to consider alternative options.

**Quick Identification Tips:**

Buddleja davidii Feature Summary

Buddleja davidii Image Gallery

Tags

#arching
#showy flowers
#deciduous
#fragrant flowers
#heat tolerant
#drought tolerant
#perennial
#white flowers
#easy to grow
#pink flowers
#weedy
#deciduous shrub
#salt tolerant
#rabbit resistant
#mass planting
#playground
#fast growing
#cpp
#aggressive
#well-drained soil
#easy to transplant
#gold flowers
#deer resistant
#children's garden
#long bloom time
#borders
#self-seeding
#pollinator plant
#fantz
#butterfly friendly
#sun
#wet soils intolerant

Similar Plants

Buddleja davidii is often confused with:

Buddleja davidii Feature Summary

Attributes
Tibet to S. Central China
Butterflies, hummingbirds, pollinators are attracted to this rich nectar source. Blossoms have a honey-like fragrance.
Perennial
Woody
Fragrance
Wildlife Food Source
Attracts Pollinators
Colorful
Attractive Flowers
Fruit
Two-valved, septicidal, 1/4-1/3" long capsule
Brown/Copper
< 1 inch
Flowers
Small, growing on 4-10" panicles. Best flowers appear when plant is severely pruned in late winter. Terminal panicle of cymes. Perfect, usually lilac, orange at the mouth, fragrant; stamens enclosed in corolla.
Pink
Purple/Lavender
White
Gold/Yellow
Fragrant
Good Cut
Long Bloom Season
Spring
Summer
fused petals
< 1 inch
Leaves
opposite, simple, ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, 4-10" long, wide acuminate, dark green above and glabrous, white soft hairs on the lower leaf surface, the petiole is very short.
Green
Gray/Silver
White
Ovate
Lanceolate
> 6 inches
3-6 inches
Whole Plant Traits
Perennial
Shrub
Arching
Multi-stemmed
Open
Coarse
Cultural Conditions
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Good Drainage
Occasionally Wet
Occasionally Dry
Coastal
Mountains
Piedmont
5b
5a
6a
6b
7a
7b
8b
8a
9a
9b
Clay
High Organic Matter
Loam (Silt)
Sand
Shallow Rocky
Landscape
Drought Tolerant Garden
Butterfly Garden
Pollinator Garden
Children's Garden
Cottage Garden
Border
Hedge
Mass Planting
Specimen
Drought
Deer
Heat
Humidity
Salt
Recreational Play Area
Lawn
Naturalized Area
Coastal
Butterflies
Pollinators
Hummingbirds
Predatory Insects
Weedy
Invasive Species

Buddleja davidii Attributes

Buddleja davidii: Country Or Region Of Origin

Tibet to S. Central China

Buddleja davidii: Wildlife Value

Butterflies, hummingbirds, pollinators are attracted to this rich nectar source. Blossoms have a honey-like fragrance.

Buddleja davidii: Life Cycle

Annual
Biennial
Bulb
Perennial
Woody

Buddleja davidii: Recommended Propagation Strategy

Division
Grafting
Layering
Leaf Cutting
Root Cutting
Seed
Stem Cutting

Buddleja davidii: Play Value

Attractive Flowers
Attracts Pollinators
Buffer
Colorful
Defines Paths
Easy to Grow
Edible fruit
Fragrance
Pieces Used in Games
Screening
Shade
Sound
Textural
Wildlife Cover/Habitat
Wildlife Food Source
Wildlife Larval Host
Wildlife Nesting
Wind Break
Wind Shimmer

Buddleja davidii Fruit

Buddleja davidii: Fruit Description

Two-valved, septicidal, 1/4-1/3" long capsule

Buddleja davidii: Fruit Type

Achene
Aggregate
Berry
Capsule
Caryopsis
Drupe
Follicle
Legume
Nut
Pome
Samara
Schizocarp
Siliqua

Buddleja davidii: Fruit Color

grass
Brown/Copper

Buddleja davidii: Display/Harvest Time

Fall
Spring
Summer
Winter

Buddleja davidii: Fruit Length

< 1 inch
1-3 inches
> 3 inches

Buddleja davidii: Fruit Width

< 1 inch
1-3 inches
> 3 inches

Buddleja davidii Flowers

Buddleja davidii: Flower Description

Small, growing on 4-10" panicles. Best flowers appear when plant is severely pruned in late winter. Terminal panicle of cymes. Perfect, usually lilac, orange at the mouth, fragrant; stamens enclosed in corolla.

Buddleja davidii: Flower Color

filter_vintage
Gold/Yellow
filter_vintage
Pink
filter_vintage
Purple/Lavender
filter_vintage
White

Buddleja davidii: Flower Inflorescence

Catkin
Corymb
Cyme
Head
Insignificant
Panicle
Raceme
Solitary
Spadix
Spike
Umbel

Buddleja davidii: Flower Value To Gardener

Edible
Fragrant
Good Cut
Good Dried
Long Bloom Season
Long-lasting
Showy

Buddleja davidii: Flower Bloom Time

Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall

Buddleja davidii: Flower Petals

2-3 rays/petals
4-5 petals/rays
6 petals/rays
7 - 20 petals/rays
asymmetrical petals
Bracts
Colored Sepals
fused petals
more than 20 petals/rays
Tepals

Buddleja davidii: Flower Shape

Bell
Cross
Crown
Cup
Dome
Funnel
Irregular
Lipped
Radial
Saucer
Star
Trumpet
Tubular
Urn
Wheel

Buddleja davidii: Flower Size

1-3 inches
3-6 inches
< 1 inch
> 6 inches

Buddleja davidii Leaves

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Description

opposite, simple, ovate-lanceolate to lanceolate, 4-10" long, wide acuminate, dark green above and glabrous, white soft hairs on the lower leaf surface, the petiole is very short.

Buddleja davidii: Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics

Broadleaf Evergreen
Deciduous
Needled Evergreen
Semi-evergreen

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Color

spa
Gray/Silver
spa
Green
spa
White

Buddleja davidii: Deciduous Leaf Fall Color

spa
Insignificant

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Type

Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Fronds
Needles
Sheath
Simple

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Arrangement

Alternate
Opposite
Other/more complex
Rosulate
Whorled

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Shape

Acicular
Auriculate
Cordate
Cuneate
Deltoid
Elliptical
Filiform
Lanceolate
Linear
Oblanceolate
Oblong
Obovate
Obtuse
Orbicular
Ovate
Palmasect
Palmatifid
Peltate
Pinnatifid
Pinnatisect
Reniform
Rhomboidal
Spatulate
Subcordate
Subulate

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Margin

Crenate
Crenulate
Dentate
Denticulate
Doubly Crenate
Doubly Dentate
Doubly Serrate
Entire
Lobed
Serrate
Sinuate
Undulate

Buddleja davidii: Hairs Present

No
Yes

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Length

< 1 inch
1-3 inches
3-6 inches
> 6 inches

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Feel

Fleshy
Glossy
Leathery
Papery
Prickly
Rough
Rubbery
Slippery
Smooth
Soft
Velvety
Waxy

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Value To Gardener

Edible
Fragrant
Good Cut
Good Dried
Long-lasting
Showy

Buddleja davidii: Leaf Width

< 1 inch
1-3 inches
3-6 inches
> 6 inches

Buddleja davidii Whole Plant Traits

Buddleja davidii: Plant Type

Annual
Bulb
Carnivorous
Edible
Epiphyte
Fern
Ground Cover
Herb
Herbaceous Perennial
Houseplant
Mushroom
Native Plant
Ornamental Grasses and Sedges
Perennial
Poisonous
Rose
Shrub
Succulent
Tree
Turfgrass
Vegetable
Vine
Water Plant
Weed
Wildflower

Buddleja davidii: Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics

Broadleaf Evergreen
Deciduous
Needled Evergreen
Semi-evergreen

Buddleja davidii: Habit/Form

Arching
Ascending
Broad
Cascading
Climbing
Clumping
Columnar
Conical
Creeping
Dense
Erect
Horizontal
Irregular
Mounding
Multi-stemmed
Multi-trunked
Open
Oval
Prostrate
Pyramidal
Rounded
Spreading
Vase
Weeping

Buddleja davidii: Growth Rate

Slow
Medium
Rapid

Buddleja davidii: Maintenance

Low
Medium
High

Buddleja davidii: Texture

Fine
Medium
Coarse

Buddleja davidii Cultural Conditions

Buddleja davidii: Light

Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
Deep shade (Less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight)
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)

Buddleja davidii: Soil pH

Acid (<6.0)
Alkaline (>8.0)
Neutral (6.0-8.0)

Buddleja davidii: Soil Drainage

Frequent Standing Water
Good Drainage
Moist
Occasional Flooding
Occasionally Dry
Occasionally Wet
Very Dry

Buddleja davidii: Available Space To Plant

12 inches-3 feet
12-24 feet
24-60 feet
3 feet-6 feet
6-feet-12 feet
Less than 12 inches
more than 60 feet

Buddleja davidii: NC Region

Coastal
Mountains
Piedmont

Buddleja davidii: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone

thermostat
5a
thermostat
5b
thermostat
6a
thermostat
6b
thermostat
7a
thermostat
7b
thermostat
8a
thermostat
8b
thermostat
9a
thermostat
9b

Buddleja davidii: Soil Texture

Clay
High Organic Matter
Loam (Silt)
Sand
Shallow Rocky

Buddleja davidii Stem

Buddleja davidii: Stem Is Aromatic

No
Yes

Buddleja davidii Landscape

Buddleja davidii: Landscape Theme

Asian Garden
Butterfly Garden
Children's Garden
Cottage Garden
Cutting Garden
Drought Tolerant Garden
Edible Garden
English Garden
Fairy Garden
Garden for the Blind
Native Garden
Nighttime Garden
Pollinator Garden
Rain Garden
Rock Garden
Shade Garden
Water Garden
Winter Garden

Buddleja davidii: Design Feature

Accent
Barrier
Border
Flowering Tree
Foundation Planting
Hedge
Mass Planting
Screen/Privacy
Security
Shade Tree
Small groups
Small Tree
Specimen
Street Tree
Understory Tree

Buddleja davidii: Resistance To Challenges

Black Walnut
Compaction
Deer
Diseases
Drought
Dry Soil
Erosion
Fire
Foot Traffic
Heat
Heavy Shade
Humidity
Insect Pests
Pollution
Poor Soil
Rabbits
Salt
Slugs
Squirrels
Storm damage
Urban Conditions
Voles
Wet Soil
Wind

Buddleja davidii: Landscape Location

Coastal
Container
Hanging Baskets
Houseplants
Lawn
Meadow
Naturalized Area
Near Septic
Patio
Pond
Pool/Hardscape
Recreational Play Area
Riparian
Rock Wall
Slope/Bank
Small Space
Vertical Spaces
Walkways
Woodland

Buddleja davidii: Attracts

Bats
Bees
Butterflies
Frogs
Hummingbirds
Moths
Pollinators
Predatory Insects
Reptiles
Small Mammals
Songbirds
Specialized Bees

Buddleja davidii: Problems

Allelopathic
Contact Dermatitis
Frequent Disease Problems
Frequent Insect Problems
Invasive Species
Malodorous
Messy
Poisonous to Humans
Problem for Cats
Problem for Children
Problem for Dogs
Problem for Horses
Short-lived
Spines/Thorns
Weak Wood
Weedy