With its elegant, arching branches and early-season flower display, Mop Top™ Fountain Butterfly Bush offers a unique twist on a garden favorite. Unlike the more familiar upright varieties, this fountain-type butterfly bush features long, weeping stems that create a soft, flowing silhouette—bringing movement and drama to the landscape.
In spring, its cascading branches are covered in densely packed, pale purple blooms that offer an early and abundant food source for pollinators, especially bees. It’s a standout performer when few other nectar plants are available.
Mop Top™ requires well-draining soil and thrives in full sun, but unlike most butterfly bushes, it blooms on old wood—so skip the spring pruning and trim only after flowering has finished.
If you're looking to add structure, softness, and seasonal interest with minimal effort, Mop Top™ is a distinctive, low-maintenance choice with high ornamental value.
- 3-5 feet tall and wide at maturity
- Hardy in zones 4-8, be sure to check your USDA zone to ensure success
- Plant in full sun (8+ hours daily)
- Space plants 3-5 feet apart for best results
- Produces pale-purple flowers starting in spring
- Maintains green foliage late spring to frost
- Blooms on old wood
- Great for borders, landscapes and as a focal point
- Attracts butterflies and hummingbirds while resisting deer
- Heat and drought tolerant, disease resistant, dwarf variety
Care: Fertilize with Proven Winners Continuous Release Plant Food in spring.
Pruning: Prune in spring, after the new growth emerges. Remove weak branches in the middle and about 1/2 to 2/3 of the height and width. Make cuts just about 1/4 of an inch above a bud. Dead or damaged wood can be removed at any time, just cut back to a set of leaves.
Soil: Butterfly bushes need perfect drainage. Their roots are sensitive to rotting, and if they spend any amount of time in wet soil, they can be set back or even die. They can grow in clay soil, but need to be planted a few inches above soil level. This creates a small “hill” that encourages water to drain away from the plant rather than settle around it.
Planting: Never amend the soil when planting a butterfly bush. Amending the soil, particularly clay soil, can cause drainage problems. Avoid mulching directly around your butterfly bush. Mulch is a great idea for other plants, but in clay soil, it can hold too much moisture. Go ahead and mulch your beds, but give your butterfly bush a bit of clearance, and never mulch all the way up to the main stems.
Dormancy: Butterfly bushes tend to be one of the later plants to leaf out in spring. Even if everything else in your landscape is turning green, that doesn’t mean you’ve lost your butterfly bush. If you're worried, try the scratch test. Lightly scratch at a few branches with your fingernail. If there is green underneath, the plant is still alive.
Shipping Info:
- Enjoy free shipping on orders over $175
- Size at shipping varies by the season and plant
- Quart shrubs are 5-8 in. at the time of shipment
- 1 Gallon shrubs are 6-24 in. at the time of shipment
- Shrubs shipped Nov-Apr will arrive dormant; shrubs shipped Apr-Oct will arrive green or in bloom
PLEASE NOTE: Due to State Laws This Product Cannot be Shipped to the Following States: OR, WA
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