Here is a photo of the backyard butterfly garden shown through the back screened in porch. You should consider placing your butterfly garden in an area of your yard where you can enjoy their visits.
Here is a photo of garden mix, center, and shredded bark mulch by the yard in my driveway prior to spreading. The last pile is crushed granite used in a pathway. 
Soil and drainage for your Butterfly Garden or Wildscape
If you already have an existing garden with good fertile soil, you probably don't have to do much before you plant your garden. You can easily enhance the soils microbial activity by incorporating some compost and working it into the soil by soil turnover with a shovel or a tiller. Keep in mind that when you till, you introduce weed seeds to the surface. If you cover your final garden planting with a protective layer of mulch, pine needles, cotton burr compost or leaves from the leaf pile, you will reduce soil temperature in the summer heat and increase the soil temperature in the winter.
Place about 3- 4" of a mulch covering after planting. You don't actually have to put a mulch, if you plant the plants close enough to one another, you can shade out the weeds that may come. You may also want to consider Medina soil activator products to incorporate into the soil. They will activate beneficial micro-organisms. This product helps to transfer nutrients to the plant by converting then into readily available nutrients that can be taken up by the root system. If the plants that once grew in that site were healthy, you probably don't have much soil enhancement to do.
If you have a non- existing garden bed, then you will have to work harder to prepare you planting site. First, you should see if you have good drainage by digging a hole about 12" deep by 12" wide and pour two gallons of water into the hole. It should drain readily at least within 20-30 minutes. You can't plant plants in a wet site unless they love water such as bog- plants. You will smother the roots if you do not have good drainage and the roots will rot leaving you with an ill and soon deceased plant.
Bad drainage on the site you've chosen, will require you to make a raised bed by edging it with steel edging, stone layers, or concrete edging. Choose the method of edging that will go with the design of you home and fits into your working budget. I have been known to edge a garden with tree trunks that have been cut down in my yard. An easy way to remove sod or grass from the site, is to rent a sod cutter from a box store or equipment rental for the day or by the hour.
Once you have cleared the site, you can then add the soil mixture and work it in. You want to mound the soil about 12 to 18" high and work all of the compost into the soil with a shovel. Turn the soil well and when your done, do another water drainage test to see how well the soil drains. Good garden soil can be purchased at your local nursery or soil yard. Just tell them what type of garden you want to plant and they will lead you to the perfect soil mix. You can purchase by the bag or by the truckload. Either way, you always want to add compost to the composition this will increase microbial activity which is important to the health of your plants. Do not put potting soil in your garden bed it is not the right mix.
If you are planning to make a garden, you may want to consider doing so in the Fall months. The cooler weather is easier on you and you have the winter to do your homework as to which plants you would like to incorporate into your design. This way, the garden will be ready for Spring planting.
Let me know if you have any questions by e-mail.
Comments