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taupe79

What Are The Very Best Hummer Attracting Plants In Your Garden?

taupe79
18 years ago

What Are The Very Best Hummer Attracting Plants In Your Garden? What works well for you?

Please list a couple of your favorites, as well as what zone you garden in (unless it's next to your name, of course)! Thanks. :)

Happy Holiday Weekend!

Comments (95)

  • cgiglio01
    13 years ago

    My hummingbirds love my rose of sharon, zinnias, hosta, and penstamon (red blooms)

  • Abita Queen Bee
    11 years ago

    Pineapple Sage! start one early spring and by late summer- early fall you will have a 4'tall bouquet of red blooms with hummers all over it.

  • eric580
    11 years ago

    Blue butterfly delphinium and tango hyssop! My hummers discovered the tall delphinium in only a few minutes! And they fight butterflies for the hyssop!

  • eclecticcottage
    11 years ago

    Salvia Wendy's Wish

  • kr222
    11 years ago

    Bump

  • kr222
    11 years ago

    Bump

  • hummersteve
    11 years ago

    I have a lot of different plants that hummers use in my mid-west region but If I could only have one plant in my garden it would be:

    salvia guaranitica blue ensign[the mature height and spread of this guy is easily 5ft plus].

  • eric580
    11 years ago

    They absolutely love my patriot watermelon zonal geranium. I took cuttings from it so I could have more geraniums just for the hummers:)

  • hummersteve
    11 years ago

    I will bore you with a couple shots of my prized plant - salvia guaranitica blue ensign. Ive had this one several years and it takes a while to get this massive and spreads by underground runners/rhizomes. This one is quite massive as you can see here well over 5' in all directions but is not invasive. But you see why hummers are drawn to this one and I often see them deep inside this big guy to rest or stand guard.

    {{!gwi}}

  • kr222
    11 years ago

    Trust me. Your pictures are not boring. I find them quite inspirational. Plus, it's nice to look at something colorful on such cold days. Feel free to post to your hearts desire. I love them!
    Kim

  • hummersteve
    11 years ago

    Hi Kim

    Thanks , much appreciated

    Steve

  • gwod1
    11 years ago

    i have a few listed above and Texas Star Hibiscus and they loved pink fuscia (sp?)

  • linda_tx8
    11 years ago

    Speaking of the Mallow family, here in Texas I've found these 2 to be very good:
    Rock Rose, Pavonia lasiopetala (not usually mentioned on hummingbird plant lists, but both hummers and butterflies love it)
    Turk's Cap, Malvaviscus Drummondii
    Also Flame Acanthus, Coral Honeysuckle, Mexican Firebush, penstemons and all salvias (you can never have too many salvias).
    I think the hummingbirds might be late here.Got a feeder up and enough plants blooming, but so far, haven't seen any since the winter hummers left...should be soon.
    Probable freeze tonight...ugh!

  • wyldkard
    11 years ago

    Here is a plant for Washington state and Colorado residents.

  • ponyexpress_1
    10 years ago

    LOL wyldkard. I hope the little guy doesn't go flying into things. I had no idea they went to that! You should photo shop it with the time stamp 4:20. He he.

  • ponyexpress_1
    10 years ago

    In my zone 6 garden, they like monarda, and lady in red salvia the best. Hands down.

  • Shimmer73
    10 years ago

    I just picked up some feeders today. I'm sure I have a few weeks before they get to mid Michigan. I saw a couple last year. My neighbor seems to have every flower you can imagine lol, so I think they stop in her yard. The ones I saw last year were hanging out in her 6 foot butterfly tree. I want to draw them to my yard, but the fiance won't let me plant big bushes or trees. Were still fighting stumps from other bushes, trees ect, from the previous owners. and they are breaking our fences. I'm 6b. Can you guys please list some flowers, they love, that I can place in pots to hang? Or even in a few big pots I can place on a back patio, ones that wont grow crazy all over the deck? I have a porch deck 20 ft by 12 ft, where I could place alot of planters.

  • Leafhead
    10 years ago

    Fuschia (annual), Russelia (annual) and Petunias

  • eclecticcottage
    10 years ago

    They absolutely fight over the Japanese quince. I absolutely HATE that bush, mainly because it's too close to my gardens and I'm always fighting suckers, but they love the blooms, and the other birds love the cover when the leaves come in.

    They also liked the Zinnia, petunias in the window boxes and of course the butterfly bushes.

  • misss
    10 years ago

    For anyone wanting just one flower, it should be salvia coccineal 'Lady in Red'. That is your backbone. The place to start. Jacob Cline and the others bloom for a few weeks at a time. Black & Blue is great, but again it is for later in the season. Start with 'Lady in Red' and then add some more candy.

  • bakerhardwoods
    10 years ago

    Stupid question -- is the Lady in Red Saliva is grown as an annual in zone 5b?

    If so, are they hard to start from seed.

    Thank you, Tim

  • dave_k_gw
    10 years ago

    bakerhardwoods,
    I started Salvia coccinea (Summer Jewel) from seed, and they were easy. Lady in red is the same species. It's annual in zone 5.

    This post was edited by dave_k on Sun, May 19, 13 at 14:06

  • lukerjedi
    10 years ago

    I've only been doing this for 6 months...the only hummingbirds I've seen are on the firespike.

  • dave_k_gw
    10 years ago

    Lobelia cardinalis and Silene regia are very good, but done now. Lonicera sempervirens gets attention and has bloomed for me all growing season in full sun on the mailbox post. Standing Cypress (Ipomopsis) variety Burpee's Hummingbird Mix has bloomed long and my hummer likes it. Salvia coccinea var. Summer Jewel blooms very quickly from seed, and long, and sees some use. Best plant overall has been Cuphea x David Verity. It's bloomed all growing season and has had one hummingbird's attention since July 3rd.

    This post was edited by dave_k on Wed, Sep 18, 13 at 22:21

  • etrsi_645
    10 years ago

    Chilean Glory Vine worked for me this year..

  • etrsi_645
    10 years ago

    Chilean Glory Vine worked for me this year..

    {{!gwi}}

  • terrene
    10 years ago

    Top 3 hummer plants in my gardens:

    Lobelia cardinalis
    Monarda didyma (Jacob Cline, Marshall's Delight, Raspberry Wine, etc.)
    Salvia guaranitica 'Black & Blue'

    They also like these in the gardens:

    Salvia coccinea - all cultivars (Lady in Red, Coral Nymph, White Nymph, etc.)
    Salvia Yvonnes
    Salvia azurea
    Tithonia
    Cleome
    Zinnia elegans
    Assorted morning glories
    Silphium perfoliatum
    Aquilegia species
    Dicentra species
    Physostegia virginiana
    Buddleia davidii
    Hostas
    Heucheras

  • Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
    10 years ago

    Lantana, followed closely by Buddleia and Cannas. Honorable but shorter-season mention goes to Basil, Coleus, Zinnia, Angelonia, Plectranthus.

  • Rhonda
    10 years ago

    Green_go,
    What an absolutely gorgeous yard! I love catmint and miss it so much :) it grew well in my Ohio yard but doesn't seem to like this Florida heat and humidity. Thanks for sharing.

  • shillanorth Z4 AB
    10 years ago

    Oh my goodness - what a lovely garden - of course the hummers were happy!!!!!!

  • Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
    10 years ago

    So, hummers like spam, go figure!

  • mehitabel
    9 years ago

    Bump

  • zeak8892
    9 years ago

    Hi all. For people in zone6-7 like me, what perennials have you found to be most effective in attracting hummers? Thanks.

  • mehitabel
    9 years ago

    Zeak, they absolutely do like Agastache 'Ava'. Zillions of tiny rose-pink flowers. This blooms late June or early July in St Louis. zone 6, blooms til hard frost. I have some in my office window and see hummers on it from first blooms til the last little guy leaves in October.

    It gets tall-- mine are about 5'. Three together make a wonderful big "bush". It is also a bee magnet-- mine have 4 or 5 kinds of bees on it at one time from great big bees to little tiny ones.

    It's a hardy perennial that blooms the first year. Offered by High Country Gardens and Bluestone Perennials.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    9 years ago

    And GW has done it again!
    Just ordered 3 Agastache 'Ava' from High Country Gardens. Laugh.
    I've always been curious about this cultivar and if it does well in St. Louis I'm sure it will do well in Tulsa. :)
    I like how not only hummers like it but bees as well.

    -Robert

  • zeak8892
    9 years ago

    thanks for the info. love the blue options!

  • Debra Vessels
    9 years ago

    I think mehitabel is a very good enabler. LOl You will love the Agastache of any variety... Now I must find room for Ava, and the Red Columbine I just received.... I see myself digging more beds soon. Thanks for bumping this.
    Debra

  • mehitabel
    9 years ago

    LOL, Robert. But you really will love it. And I find the bees fascinating. The big ones need really hot days to get enough energy, so if it's rainy and cool they sort of sleep on the plant. The little ones don't need as much heat, or they're busy even on the cooler dimmer days.

    Debra, "Ava" will look glorious against that fence of yours. Mine is under the eaves against the house wall (pale brick). Looks wonderful from the street.

  • knottyceltic
    9 years ago

    At my house, S/W Ontario, zone 5b, we have the most attraction of hummingbirds with *ANNUAL* Sage in a colour I describe as "Grape Soda Purple".

  • aurorawa
    9 years ago

    Puget Sound area (Zone 8b). They love my glads, honeysuckle, catmint, bee balm, cardinal lobelia, blue shrimp plants, pineapple sage, red sage, and lupines. I have a hummer nest in the purple rhododendron next to my house and a couple of years ago, we found one in our hydrangeas.

  • casia_nh
    9 years ago

    I have seen them in my variegated weigela, and reliably every morning this week in my daylilies (mostly Stella d'oro).

  • ladyrose65
    9 years ago

    Wow! I am taking note of all the plants that have been mentioned. I have a regular returner that goes to the 'Jacobs cline' Monarda and the Maltese Cross. I keep the plants cut back so I get a steady flow of blooms.

    He/she skips over the buddleia?

  • radovan
    9 years ago

    wyldkard ,
    I love your photo:-)

  • Loretta NJ Z6
    9 years ago

    No one mentioned Nicotiana langsdorffii?

  • Lars
    9 years ago

    In my yard, they like the different aloes that I have growing, and these bloom mostly around winter, from November through January or February. They love the neighbor's bottle brush tree across the street, which attracts swarms of hummers.

    They also like my bromeliads and tillandsia, but the tillandsia flowers do not last very long. I have one bromeliad (which has multiplied) that will tolerate full sun, and they especially like that one - photo below.

    Lars

  • kat123
    9 years ago

    I live in north Texas. We plant Windy's Wish every spring. It is a beautiful plant with pretty red blooms. It can take our Texas heat and the hummingbirds absolutely love it!

  • pinusresinosa
    9 years ago

    I grow petunia exserta each year and the ruby throats seem to love them!

    I second the agastaches, penstemmons, and trumpet vine blooms. The hummers here love those as well. Salvias too. Hummers here also seem to enjoy the zinnias as much as the butterflies do! Lavender is one that everyone seems to like here too- hummers, butterflies, and the bees.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Lavender Varieties

  • MikeinPA_Zone5b
    9 years ago

    Red Bee Balm Monarda here in the Northeast part of Pa Zone 5b.


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