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A Butterfly House
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The Dr. Bill Roston Butterfly House in Springfield, Missouri, allows visitors to see, touch, and learn about more than 25 varieties of Missouri's beautiful native butterflies.
This more-than-colorful and attraction draws thousands of visitors annually, allowing them to see live and lively all four stages of butterfly life from egg, to larva, to chrysalis, to the free-flying adult butterfly.
In addition, by providing many of the foliage plants that feed the caterpillars and the nectar plants that nourish the adult butterflies, the Butterfly House is in itself a garden. Above, for example, a Tithonia, or Mexican Sunflower, provides nectar to a lovely Monarch.
Created and staffed entirely by Friends of the Garden volunteers, the Butterfly House is funded solely by donations. Located in the Springfield Botanical Gardens at 2400 South Scenic in Springfield, it's open to the public from May through September on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and sometimes for a few hours during the week to be announced.
Admission is free to all. Donations are, however, encouraged and deeply appreciated.
The following is our own personal view of this wonderful attraction.
Note: The Butterfly House is also the site of the summer's annual Butterfly Festival, a big-fun event you can take a peek at here.
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The Beginnings
 In 2009 it was Dr. Bill Roston who first  dreamed up the idea of having a Butterfly House in Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park and immediately set to work with fellow Friends of the Garden like Dr. Stan Horsch at right to make it happen,
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Enlarge photo | | Planting
Crucial ingredients for any Butterfly House: plants to provide the butterflies nectar and feed their caterpillars.
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Enlarge photo | | Water
Butterflies need water, too, and this little water feature fills the bill. If you notice, it also includes a "puddler" in front, a bowl of sand and water where butterflies can take in nutrients not provided by nectar.
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Enlarge photo | | The House
In late May of its first year, the Butterfly House was ready for visitors.
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Enlarge photo | | An Invitation
Bill invites visitors to Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park to come on in.
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Enlarge photo | | First Crowds
From the moment the Butterfly House
opened in late May, people came.
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Enlarge photo | | A Lesson
Bill gives an inquisitive young butterfly-lover a a good look at a box of caterpillars.
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Enlarge photo | | Who's Afraid?
Clearly not this little girl. She's
making friends with this caterpillar.
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Enlarge photo | | The Monarch
The beloved Monarch is one of the House's denizens. Here a beautiful specimen feeds on an equally lovely cluster of Butterfly Bush flowers (Buddleia davidii species).
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Enlarge photo | | Monarch & Tithonia
Some think the Monarch and the vivid Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia sp.) a perfect pair. We agree.
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Enlarge photo | | Enthralled
Children and the Butterfly House: an experience.
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Enlarge photo | | Zebra Swallowtail
One of Missouri's most beautiful butterflies, the Zebra Swallowtail can have a wingspan of more than 4 inches. Its long, black tails qualify it as a "kite" butterfly. It's said that the Zebra rarely ventures far from the location of the only plant on which its caterpillar feeds, the PawPaw.
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Enlarge photo | | A Floral Companion
Outside of the Butterfly House is a floral garden design poetically titled "Windrider."
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