Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-24” author: “William Ryder”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-22” author: “Louise Bush”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-10-21” author: “Clayton Schleck”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-08-25” author: “Jessica Yancy”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-11” author: “Martha Manship”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-08-26” author: “Antoinette Le”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-07” author: “Dwayne Kennedy”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
title: “Plant Combination Ideas To Attract Hummingbirds” ShowToc: true date: “2024-09-28” author: “Camille Anderson”
Most of the world’s nearly 340 hummingbird species are native to the western hemisphere where they can be found living in deserts, mountains, and tropical locales where there’s a mix of tall trees, an underlayer of shrubs, and open fields. Your own backyard is fair game, too, made even more appealing with plants for hummingbirds that can help sustain their incredibly fast metabolism. With their intensely beating wings and their Blue Angels-style flight patterns, hummingbirds burn between 6,000-12,000 calories each day and must refuel every quarter hour. With fewer forest edges and meadows available as urban development expands, suburban gardens are playing a greater role in providing food and shelter for these amazing creatures. Below are five garden planting recipes that will help you attract and support hummingbirds. Always include plants that are suited to your USDA Hardiness Zone and ensure your plants are appropriate for your soil type, light levels, and moisture conditions.
1. Spring Flowers For Early Arrivals
Hummingbirds rely on spring-flowering plants such as perennials and small shrubs to sustain them as they arrive in spring. A garden bed with the following spring bloomers offers a staggered flowering schedule to last throughout the season:
2. Summer’s Abundance of Annuals
Summer-flowering annuals are fast-growing and full of blooms all season long – just what their hummingbird visitors require. Best of all, they add pops of color to new or existing garden beds.
3. Waterwise and Nectar-Filled
For those in warm, arid environments, a host of drought-tolerant plants are beloved by hummingbirds.
Agastache (Agastache spp.) There’s a reason this plant’s common name is hummingbird mint! They flock to its nectar-filled flowers on spikes up to 4ft tall. There are many species and varieties to choose from, all of which are drought-tolerant. USDA Zones 3-10.Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis) Also known as beardtongue, Penstemon also has tall flower spikes loaded with tubular flowers. Once established, penstemons are drought tolerant and need very little care. USDA Zones 3-9.Red Hot Poker (Knifophia uvaria) Another perennial with tall spikes, red hot poker’s red, orange, and yellow-tipped tubular flowers shine in a dry landscape. Clump them together or use as a focal plant in a succulent garden. USDA Zones 5-9.Aloe (Aloe spp.) This low-water succulent produces 2-4ft tall spikes tipped with orange, red and yellow tubular flowers. They’ll often repeat their blooms throughout the growing season, offering hummingbirds a double dose of nectar. USDA Zones 9-11.Yucca (Hesperaloe parviflora) Another waterwise desert plant, yuccas come in a variety of colors and sizes. Tall spikes flower for weeks at a time and are eagerly visited by hummingbirds. USDA Zones 5-9.
4. Bring Them Closer with Containers
Can’t see hummingbirds all the way out in your garden? Lure them into view by placing hummingbird-friendly flowers in patio containers. Plant in individual pots and then group together, or plant in one large container.
5. Perennial Pairings
The world of perennials offers a daunting number of choices for hummingbird gardens. We’ve made it easier to choose by creating a Native Hummingbird Garden Kit in collaboration with Plant By Number, available on the Gardening Know How Shop. Designed to fit into a 5ft x 5ft garden, the kit comes with a planting plan, fabric planting map, and plants that will attract and feed hummingbirds. All varieties here are partial to full sun, grow best in rich, well-draining soils, and are suited to USDA Zones 5-8. Each kit contains one of each of the following: A second Native Hummingbird Garden Kit, available on the Gardening Know How Shop, expands this kit’s footprint into an 8ft x 5ft garden with the addition of two more penstemon ‘Dakota Burgundy’ and a ‘Pardon My Cerise’ bee balm, with its bounty of richly red, hummingbird-attracting blooms. This article features products available from third-party vendors on the Gardening Know How Shop.
