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Urtica dioica � Common Nettle, Stinging Nettle

The Ultimate Host Plant
Urtica dioica or Nettle is common particularly on waysides and on any damp areas. It is an unbeatable host plant for butterflies. For Inachis io, Aglais urticae and Vanessa atalanta it is the one and only host plant they can utilize. Also Cynthia cardui, Araschia levana, Aglais ichnusa and Polygonia c-album utilize it, and those are just the European butterflies; there must be only so many species worldwide.

Dedicating a corner in your garden for Nettles is an easy way to provide food for the butterflies (caterpillars) in your area � and it costs nothing!
But do not touch the nettle, not only because it stings � I am meaning its use for food here.
I'm sure you've heard about its use for food, but we people can go to the grocery store. We are not dependent on a single foodstuff the way butterflies are. Butterflies need that one food plant or they die, we can eat just about anything.

So, let�s keep the nettles growing and save them for the butterfly caterpillars!
Urtica dioica is the sole food plant for Inachis io, Aglais urticae and Vanessa atalanta.
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