Outdoor Activities: Create a Butterfly Garden

Bring the butterfly effect to your yard!

Submitted by
Kayla Chong

Help your kid transform some toilet paper and seeds into pretty butterfly paper. Then let her transform the paper into a butterfly-friendly garden in the backyard. And by the end of the project, you'll have transformed several boring hours into some creative outdoor activities for kids. (Are you sensing a theme here?)

Six squares of 1-ply toilet paper
A clean jelly jar or other lidded container
Warm water:
Straight from the tap will do.
Colored tissue paper or napkin
Wildflower seeds:
Like marigold, purple coneflower, hollyhock, butterfly flower, aster, nasturtium, goldenrod, etc.
A plastic or paper cup
A bowl
A fine mesh strainer
Measuring spoons
A clean kitchen towel:
In other words, not coated in mac 'n cheese.
A sponge:
Again, not coated in mac 'n cheese.
Hair dryer:
Again, not coated in mac 'n cheese. (Why is everything you own covered in darn mac 'n cheese?!)

First have your kid make the pulp. Have her tear six squares of 1-ply toilet paper into dime-sized pieces and drop them into a jar 1/3 full of warm tap water.
Next, have her shred some colorful tissue paper or paper napkin into confetti. She can also add some shredded flower petals and/or grass as well if she's feeling all earthy-crunchy.
Help her cap the jar tightly and let her shake it for one or two minutes, until the toilet paper dissolves into a goopy gruel. Take turns shaking the jar so your kid's arm doesn't fall off.
Have her add ¼ teaspoon of wildflower seeds and more water, until the jar is ¾ full, then shake it all up again.
When the pulp is done, it's time to mold it. First, have your kid pour the pulp into a 16-ounce cup.
Help her press the strainer, bowl-side down, tightly against the top of the cup.
Then, have her flip the cup and strainer upside down, keeping them tightly together. She should do this over the sink so she doesn't get dribbles of pulp juice all over the floor. (Not that you would notice it among the dribbles of all the other juice coating your floor.)
Have her gently bounce and shake the strainer to coax even more water out from the pulp. Then, leave the strainer sitting in the sink for a minute or so until the pulp stops dripping.
When it's done dripping, have her gently lift the cup, leaving the circle of pulp on the strainer.
She'll want to make sure the circle is completely filled up with pulp. If there are any gaps in it, have her pinch a tiny bit of pulp from the edge and plug the holes.
Then carefully help her peel the circle of pulp off of the strainer and place it on a folded kitchen towel.
Have her gently sponge off any excess water while pressing the circle flat with the sponge.
Set the pulp out in the sun to dry or, if your kid is impatient (show us the kid who isn't), use the hair dryer to blow-dry it.
When it's dry, help gently trace the shape of a butterfly onto it and carefully cut it out.
On the next sunny spring day, lather on the SPF and head out to the backyard. Have your kid dig a shallow hole and plant the paper in the yard or into a little flowerpot. Cover it with about a quarter-inch of soil.
Then wait for the flowers to blossom. Your kid will love watching the process, from the first shoot breaking through the ground to the bud appearing to the flowering finale.
Inevitably, butterflies, which love wildflowers, will visit your garden once it's bloomed. So have your kid grab the camera for some fabulous photo ops. Or let her grab a butterfly net and spend the next 30 minutes running around in the backyard while you enjoy the scenery (and maybe a nice chilled glass of white).