What should I plant for swallowtails? This often-asked question is often answered with, “Fennel, dill, and parsley”. But there are other species of swallowtails and most use different plants.
Note: not all species are found in every state. Planting a host plant for a species that does not fly in your state will not make them appear and lay eggs. We should all plant host plants for species that are found in our area.
(These are only some of the plants that these species use as host plants. There are many others that we did not list.)
Spicebush Swallowtail and Palamedes Swallowtail:
Red Bay Persea borbonia
Swamp Bay Persea humilis
Silk Bay Persea palustris
Sassafrass Sassafras albidum
Spicebush Lindera benzion
Camphor tree (invasive non-native) Cinnamomum camphora
Zebra Swallowtail:
Pawpaw Asimina spp.
Gold Rim Swallowtail (also called Polydamas Swallowtail):
Important note: Buy pipevine plants according to their botanical names, not their common names. Many species of pipevine have the same common name. Some pipevine species are deadly to Gold Rim Swallowtail caterpillars.
(Click on this sentence for a more complete list.)
Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia trilobata
White-veined Pipevine – Aristolochia fimbriata
Fragrant Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia pandurata synonym of Aristolochia odoratissima
Brazilian Dutchman’s Pipe or Giant Pelican Flower – Aristolochia gigantea
Calico Vine – Aristolochia littoralis (was A. elegans)
Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia trilobata
Fragrant Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia pandurata (was Aristolochia odoratissima)
Indian Birthwort – Aristolochia tagala
Pipevine Swallowtail:
Important note: Buy pipevine plants according to their botanical names, not their common names. Many species of pipevine have the same common name. Some pipevine species are deadly to Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars.
(Click on this sentence for a more complete list.)
Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia trilobata
White-veined Pipevine – Aristolochia fimbriata
Fragrant Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia pandurata synonym of Aristolochia odoratissima
Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia macrophylla
Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia trilobata
Fragrant Dutchman’s Pipe – Aristolochia pandurata (was Aristolochia odoratissima)
Virginia Snakeroot – Aristolochia serpentaria
White-veined Pipevine – Aristolochia fimbriata
Woolly Pipevine – Aristolochia tomentosa
Birthwort – Aristolochia clematitis
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail:
Tulip Poplar Liriodendron tulipifera
Hop Tree Ptelea trifoliata
Black Cherry Prunus serotina
Sweet Bay Magnolia virginiana
Giant Swallowtail:
Citrus trees Citrus spp.
Hop Tree Ptelea trifoliata
Rue Ruta graveolens
Prickly Ash Zanthoxylum americanumn
Hercules’ Club Zanthoxymum clava-herculis
Black Swallowtail and Anise Swallowtail:
(Click on this sentence for a more complete list.)
Parsley Petroselinum spp.
Fennel Foeniculum vulgare
Dill Anethum graveolens
Queen Annes’ Lace Daucus Carota
Carrots Daucus carota
Rue Ruta graveolens
Canadian Tiger Swallowtail
Aspen Populus spp.
Black Cherry Prunus serotina
Birch Betula spp.
Ornythion Swallowtail – Papilio ornythion
Citrus trees Citrus spp.
Appalachian Tiger Swallowtail – Papilio appalachinensis
Black Cherry Prunus serotina
Western Tiger Swallowtail – Papilio rutulus
Willows Salix spp.
Wild Cherry Prunus spp.
Ash Fraxinus spp.
Aspen Populus spp.
Old World Swallowtail – Papilio machaon
Sagebrush Artemisia spp.
Wild Tarragon Artemisia dracunculus
Arctic Wormwood Artemisia senjavinensis
Indra Swallowtail – Papilio indra
Herbs in the parsley family Apiaceae spp.
Pale Swallowtail – Papilio eurymedon
Cherry Prunus emarginata
Ash Fraxinus spp.
Coffee-berry Rhamnus californica
Two-tailed Swallowtail – Papilio multicaudata
Chokecherry Prunus spp.
Hop Tree Ptelea spp.
Ash Fraxinus spp.
Butterfly Fun Facts 