All kids are fascinated by butterflies and will often ask their parents if they can catch and keep one. A butterfly garden kit lets your child do just that except it is even better because they get to watch it transform from a caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly!
All of these butterfly kits are extremely affordable and include everything you need including the habitat, food and even live caterpillars. There are a number of different kits available – each one has different sizes, accessories and numbers of caterpillars. All of the kits use caterpillars that will grow up into Painted Lady Butterflies.
Some of the kits come with a voucher that you have to mail in with shipping and handling to receive your live caterpillars while others come with them live when you order the kit, so it is important to understand which you will be receiving. Since the kits that come with a voucher have additional shipping costs to get the caterpillars, you should also factor this into your budget. You would think that everyone would want live caterpillars, but there are actually reasons why you may want to choose the voucher instead. If temperatures are below 40F or above 85F, it may be unsafe to order live caterpillars, so you would want the voucher in that situation and then redeem the voucher when the temperatures are safe.
Once you own one of these, you can get butterfly kit refills here to just get more live caterpillars.
Classroom Kits
Kit Refills
Butterfly Habitats
Raising Butterflies
Insect Lore Butterfly Garden
The basic Insect Lore kit includes a mesh habitat that is nearly a foot tall, and it includes a voucher to get 5 live caterpillars. When you get the caterpillars, you’ll also receive food and feeding tools. This particular set makes for a great Christmas present or even a birthday present if it is too cold or hot to receive the live kit.
Insect Lore Giant Butterfly Garden
The Giant Butterfly Garden kit does NOT provide giant butterflies unfortunately – this kit includes a larger habitat that is 18 inches tall instead of the 11.5″ of the standard habitat. A number of butterfly toy figurines come with this kit. This also comes with a voucher to get 5 live caterpillars.
Insect Lore LIVE Butterfly Garden
If you want live caterpillars mailed to you when you get the kit (if temperatures are safe), then this kit is the same thing as the standard Butterfly Garden except it comes with live caterpillars instead of the voucher. Make sure you only order this when temperatures are at a safe level where you live (40F – 85F).
Nature Gift Store LIVE Butterfly Kit
This is another live caterpillar kit, but it is larger. It comes with 10 live caterpillars and an 18 inch netted habitat. Many people may prefer this one not only because of the larger size and more caterpillars but it also comes with a mister and butterfly feeder for those that want to keep the butterflies instead of setting them free.