05/12/2025
Plant These to Attract Hummingbirds 🐦💙
• Trumpet Vine (Campsis radicans): This vigorous vine produces trumpet-shaped orange or red flowers that are a favorite nectar source for hummingbirds. It's a fast grower and needs sturdy support.
• Fuchsia: With their pendulous, bell-like flowers in vibrant combinations of pink, purple, and red, fuchsias are highly attractive to hummingbirds. They come in various forms, including trailing varieties perfect for hanging baskets.
• Columbine (Aquilegia): These delicate, spurred flowers come in a range of colors, including red, yellow, and purple, and are a favorite of hummingbirds, especially those with longer bills.
• Salvia (Sage): Many varieties of salvia, particularly those with red, tubular flowers, are excellent for attracting hummingbirds. They are relatively easy to grow and come in annual and perennial forms.
• Bee Balm (Monarda): As mentioned previously for butterflies, bee balm with its bright red, pink, or purple shaggy flowers is also a magnet for hummingbirds, providing a rich source of nectar.
• Zinnias: While also attracting butterflies, zinnias with their bright, daisy-like flowers offer accessible nectar that hummingbirds will also visit, especially single-petal varieties.
• Honeysuckle (Lonicera): Many types of honeysuckle produce fragrant, tubular flowers that are a favorite nectar source for hummingbirds. Choose native varieties when possible.
• Red Hot Pokers (Kniphofia): These striking plants produce tall spikes of tubular flowers that transition from red at the top to yellow or orange at the bottom, resembling a hot poker. They are very attractive to hummingbirds.
• Lantanas: These shrubby plants produce clusters of small, colorful flowers that are rich in nectar and attract both butterflies and hummingbirds. The colors often change as the flowers mature.
When planting for hummingbirds, it's beneficial to choose a variety of plants that bloom at different times throughout the growing season to provide a continuous nectar source. Clustered plantings of the same flower can also be more effective at attracting these energetic visitors. Remember to avoid using pesticides, as they can harm hummingbirds and other beneficial insects.
