Attract Hummingbirds to Your Garden!
Forget the thermometer, you know when the warm weather’s here when you see hummingbirds! Hummingbirds are incredibly smart little birds, capable of navigating great distances and clever enough to return to their previous summer’s feeding grounds. Their diet consists of nectar and small insects, with flower nectar as their main preference. To attract them, plant a yard full of nectar-rich plants. June is an excellent time to plant, so get out in the yard and start on your hummingbird garden with some of their favorite annual and perennial picks below!
PERENNIALS
Foxglove
Foxglove offers a ton of nectar in their tube-shaped flowers which hummingbirds and bees love. They also come in a beautiful variety of colors like deep pinks, peach, and purples, and have unique speckled throats.
Monarda (Bee Balm)
Photo Courtesy of Proven Winners: www.provenwinners.com
Bee Balm is surging in popularity as it is a well-known favorite of hummingbirds and one of the best options to attract them! It is also attractive to butterflies and bees, so you will see a ton of pollinators coming to visit. This plant does best in full sun, but can be grown in partial shade.
Hosta
This popular shade perennial is also a great choice for hummingbirds during their bloom period! Hostas usually flower for about 3-4 weeks between May and September, depending on the variety. Choose a more fragrant variety like ‘Stained Glass’ or ‘Royal Crest’, since hummingbirds tend to prefer these over less fragrant ones.
Gaura
Gaura is an excellent low-maintenance perennial option with good drought tolerance, perfect for withstanding high heat! Put this in your pollinator pathway and watch bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds enjoy them.
ANNUALS
Salvia guarnanitica
This annual is a fabulous summer performer for full sun and an excellent hummingbird magnet. 2 to 3′ tall spire flowers begin in May and continue until October. This salvia dispels the myth that hummingbirds only frequent red flowers. Yes, these little birds are attracted to reds but forage from countless other colors too!
Cuphea ignea “cigar plant“
Orange, tubular flowers cover the bushy plants starting in summer and continue until frost. Cigar plants have tons of flowers and are nectar-rich. More flowers mean more hummingbird visits! This annual can be used as a bedding plant or in containers.
Lantana
With its bright colors, fragrance, and plenty of nectar, Lantana is frequently visited by pollinators! It is an excellent container plant and able to withstand high temperatures. It is also left alone by deer and rabbits and is relatively disease-free.
FEEDERS
Start getting hummingbirds into your yard right now with our large variety of feeders!
