Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'
Oenothera lindheimeri 'Whirling Butterflies' · Onagraceae Popular
Small white flowers flutter on long, wand-like stems that sway in the slightest breeze. It is airy enough to see through, so it can sit further forward than its height suggests.
- Size
- 3 ft tall, 24 in wide
- Zones
- 5 to 9
- Light
- Full sun
- Flowers
- Mid June to mid September
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Weaver
A bed built around gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'
The planner designed this bed around gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 715 that suit those conditions and its dry soil, and says below why gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' × 2, white
- 2 Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch' × 21, pink
- 3 October daphne × 3, pink
- 4 Brown-eyed Susan × 3, yellow
- 5 Dwarf English boxwood × 1, dark green leaves
- 6 Wild quinine × 3, white
- 7 Schubert's allium × 3, pink
- 8 Hyacinth × 8, blue
Why this plant
- The only airy sprays. The others are dense clusters, daisies, flat plates and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- In the middle. At 3 ft it is seen over Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch' (8 in) in front of it.
- 2 plants in 2 places. An accent is a punctuation mark: the repeat along the bed gives it rhythm.
- Fine leaf against bold. Wild quinine is beside it: the strongest contrast of leaf there is.
Why now
- In flower for 15 weeks. From mid June to mid September.
- Part of the bed's peak. With Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch', wild quinine and Schubert's allium in late June: 4 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 5 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The bed is tied together by its repeats: two kinds come round again along it, Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch' and gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'. Pink is the colour seen most, on 3 of the 7 kinds grown for their flowers.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' goes in a border
At 3 ft it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium tall (2½ to 3 ft). It is airy enough to see through, so it can also come forward and veil what is behind it.
Its job: weaver. A light, airy plant threaded singly between sturdier ones to knit the planting together.
So fine that you look through it, so it can come forward of its height. Dot single plants among lower, denser ones for a loose, moving layer on top. It is short-lived in heavy, wet soil.
- An airy veil over lower plants
- Hot, dry, sunny beds
- Movement in the breeze
What to plant with gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Sedum 'Autumn Joy': in flower together for six weeks, from mid August; bold leaves against its fine ones; happy in the same dry soil.
- English lavender 'Hidcote': in flower together for six weeks, from late June; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same dry soil.
- Blue fescue: its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (10 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same dry soil.
Questions about gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'
Does gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' need sun or shade?
Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).
It wants dry, sharply drained soil, on the lean side, with no feeding, and little watering once settled. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 9. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid June to mid September. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 5 | Mid June to mid September |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Mid June to mid September |
| Zone 7 | Early June to mid September |
| Zone 8 | Early June to mid September |
| Zone 9 | Late May to mid September |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' be planted?
18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 24 in (60 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 3 ft (90 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' plants do I need?
At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 17 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as one at a time, threaded between sturdier plants.
In the bed above, the planner used two in two groups.
Is gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'?
Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' is over by mid September. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Garden chrysanthemum: from mid September to late October, 24 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Montauk daisy: from mid September to late October, 3 ft tall.
- October daphne: from mid September to late October, 8 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' look like in winter?
Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
Is gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' good for bees and butterflies?
Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' is visited by bees, butterflies, moths and hummingbirds.
It is a host plant: the caterpillars of white-lined sphinx feed on its leaves. A butterfly can only lay its eggs on its host plants, so these do more for it than any nectar flower.
It is native to the United States (this is a named variety of the native plant).
More Oenothera
- Gaura 'Siskiyou Pink' Oenothera lindheimeri 'Siskiyou Pink'
- Missouri evening primrose Oenothera macrocarpa
- Pink evening primrose Oenothera speciosa
- Sundrops Oenothera fruticosa
- Sundrops 'Fireworks' Oenothera fruticosa 'Fyrverkeri'
In these guides
- Deer-resistant perennials for full sun
- Drought-tolerant perennials for full sun
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Native perennials for pollinators
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants for bees
- Long-flowering plants: 12 weeks or more
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 3 ft (90 cm) tall, 24 in (60 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium tall (2½ to 3 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Middle, or further forward: it is airy enough to see through
- Flowers
- Mid June to mid September; airy sprays; white, pink
- Leaves
- Fine texture, herbaceous; green
- Shape
- Upright, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 9
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil
- Lean, dry and sharply drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Onagraceae
- Comes from
- Southeastern U.S.A
- Attracts
- Bees, butterflies, moths, hummingbirds
- Host plant for
- White-lined sphinx
- Stands up to
- Deer, drought, heat
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.