Moths can sometimes be overlooked in favour of their generally more colourful cousins, the butterflies. But moths provide important services too: as well as pollinating our night-flowering plants, they play an important role in pollinating crops and wildflowers; complementing the services of daytime pollinators. Moths are vital players in a healthy ecosystem and a valuable food source for garden birds.
The UK has around 2500 species of moth, many of whom are in alarming decline. But gardeners can help, and one easy way is simply to grow a few night-flowering plants and moth caterpillar food plants. See how many of these 10 best plants for moths you can include in your garden, and check out the moth-themed resilient planting pocket at the 2024 RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival for more inspiration.
Plants for adult moths
Most moths feed on flowers that open in the evening, or become more heavily scented in the evening, such as Nicotiana (tobacco plant) – a great moth-friendly annual for filling gaps in borders or containers. The best plants for adult moths are often nectar-rich, tubular flowers that the moths are able to access using their long proboscis (tube-like mouthpart).
Evening primrose (Oenothera)
The yellow silken blooms of evening primrose open to release their scent as the sun goes down. Great for free-draining soils, Oenothera will attract many different night-flying moths.
Plant it: in dry gardens, gravel gardens, prairie planting or free-draining borders
Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum)
Our native honeysuckle, and its cultivars, makes a wonderfully fragrant climber for a large wall, pergola or trellis. Look out for visits from the colourful elephant hawk-moth (Deilephila elpenor) and the delicate twenty-plume moth (Alucita hexadactyla).
Plant it: to climb up a trellis, pergola, wall or fence, or scrambling up a tree in a woodland garden
Summer-flowering jasmines (e.g. Jasminum officinale)
Summer-flowering jasmines make lovely climbers for summer evening fragrance. They are especially good for sunny or city gardens, where they can be grown in large containers. Summer-flowering jasmines may be particularly attractive to the large and impressive privet hawk-moth (Sphinx ligustri) and pine hawk-moth (Sphinx pinastri).
Plant it: to climb up a trellis, pergola, wall or fence, or in a large container with an obelisk
White campion (Silene latifolia)
The delicate white blooms of this native biennial, or short-lived perennial, make an elegant addition to a cottage garden, informal border or wildlife area. The flowers produce lilac aldehydes, the scent compounds known to attract the plant’s key pollinator, the lychnis moth (Hadena bicruris).
Plant it: in an informal border, wildlife area, long grass or woodland garden
Sweet rocket (Hesperis matronalis)
Also known as dame’s violet, this purple-flowered short-lived Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all year round, while less hardy types need protection over winter. The term herbaceous perennial is used to describe long-lived plants without a permanent woody structure (they die back to ground level each autumn), distinguishing them from trees, shrubs and sub-shrubs.
Plant it: in an informal border, cottage garden or wildlife area
Plants for moth caterpillars
To help moths all year round, and at all stages of their lifecycle, it’s important to also provide food plants for moth caterpillars. Whereas adult moths feed on nectar from flowers, the caterpillars feed on leaves, so require different plants.
Foxgloves (Digitalis)
Perfect for the cottage or woodland garden, foxgloves are food plants for several moths, including the lesser yellow underwing (Noctua comes), angle shades moth (Phlogophora meticulosa) and setaceous Hebrew character (Xestia c-nigrum). These quintessential cottage garden Biennials are plants that complete their life cycle over the course of two years. In the first year, biennials typically produce leaves and roots but no flowers. In the second year, they flower and produce seeds before dying. Some common biennials include foxgloves (Digitalis), honesty (Lunaria annua) and viper's bugloss (Echium vulgare).
Plant it: in borders, cottage gardens or woodland gardens
Lady’s bedstraw (Galium verum)
This delightful native perennial wildflower produces frothy heads of tiny yellow flowers, which make a colourful addition to areas of long grass in summer, while providing food for the hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum), elephant hawk-moth (Deilephila elpenor) and bedstraw hawk-moth (Hyles gallii).
Plant it: in long grass areas or wildflower meadows
Mullein (Verbascum thapsus, V. bombyciferum)
The felty grey leaves of mullein are irresistible to the brightly striped caterpillars of the mullein moth (Cucullia verbasci).These drought-resistant, statuesque biennials produce tall spires of yellow flowers that are perfect for punctuating prairie planting or a dry garden, as well as adding colour to wildlife areas.
Plant it: in borders, dry gardens, gravel gardens or wildlife areas
Mint (Mentha species)
A great addition to every garden thanks to its all-round usefulness, mint caters for caterpillars of the mint moth and beautiful plume moth, as well as making a lovely herbal tea and producing pretty flowers that are loved by bees. A vigorous plant that will spread if uncontained, mint is ideal for pots or ground cover.
Plant it: in containers or as ground cover
Mixed native trees or hedge
No hedge is more valuable to wildlife than a mixed native hedge, which provides for a huge range of insects, mammals and birds. Include species such as hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), blackthorn (Prunus spinosa), hazel (Coryllus avellana) and dog rose (Rosa canina), each of which are food plants for several different moth caterpillars. If you have space for a larger native tree, oak, birch and willow all provide for several moth species, as well as a host of other wildlife.
Other considerations
- Artificial light in gardens can disrupt the crepuscular (dawn/dusk) rhythms of nocturnal wildlife, so consider taking steps to minimise the impact of garden or security lighting. Find out more
- To protect moths and other wildlife, avoid using pesticides unless absolutely necessary. Though the vast majority of the UK’s 2,500 moth species do not cause noticeable damage in gardens and should be encouraged, a handful are considered problematic. If these are present and some level of damage is not tolerable, try to use natural enemies by encouraging predators such as ground beetles and birds, and employing hand-picking and biological control methods to target caterpillars of the problem species. Find out more
