Top 10 Plants for Hummingbirds

The secret to attracting hummingbirds to your backyard is simple-start by growing the flowers that flying jewels can't resist. Take a look at these Top 10 favorites.

Photo: RDA GID

Bee balm

If you want to start a hummingbird and butterfly garden, this easy-to-grow perennial is a good selection. Its bright colors and nectar-filled blooms attract a wide variety of "flying jewels."

The sweet and minty, citrus-scented plant isn't just for your winged friends, however. Both the leaves and the flowers are perfectly edible-add them to salads or use as garnishes. The dried leaves have been used for centuries to make tea.

• Common Name: Bee balm.
• Botanical Name:Monarda didyma.
• Hardiness: Zones 4 to 9.
• Bloom Time: Summer.
• Size: 3 to 4 feet high, 18 to 26 inches wide.
• Flowers: Clusters of tubular flowers most commonly in red, but also violet, purple, pink, and white.
• Light Needs: Full sun; tolerates afternoon shade.
• Growing Advice: Space plants at least 18 inches apart. Provide ample water. They'll quickly spread and fill in until they look like one large mass of blooms.
• Prize Picks:Jacob Cline is an outstanding dark red, powdery mildew-resistant cultivars. Violet Queen and Blue Stocking are resistant choices in the blue=purple color range. Snow White and Snow Queen are popular white selections.

Photo: RDA GID

Cardinal flower

You won't have to look very hard to see the bright scarlet blooms of this perennial beauty. Even its dark green leaves are particularly striking in the garden.

• Common Name: Cardinal flower.
• Botanical Name:Lobelia cardinalis.
• Hardiness: Zones 3 to 9.
• Bloom Time: Summer.
• Size: 3 to 4 feet high, 2 feet wide.
• Flowers: Traditionally scarlet red.
• Light Needs: Partial shade to full sun.
• Growing Advice: Plant in fertile and moist soil.
• Prize Picks:Ruby Slippers' dark ruby flowers are sure to attract winged beauties to your yard. If you're thinking pink, try Twilight Zone.

Photo: Dutch gardens; www.dutchgardens.com

Trumpet vine

There's a reason you see photographs of hummingbirds at trumpet vine. They love this sweet beauty!

Make a statement by planting this perennial favorite in your garden. It easily fills a trellis with its orange blooms. It is also good draped over a sturdy fence, arbor, or dead tree.

• Common Name: Trumpet vine.
• Botanical Name:Campsis radicans.
• Hardiness: Zones 4 to 9.
• Bloom Time: Summer.
• Size: Climbs to 40 feet.
• Flowers: Orange-red.
• Light Needs: Full sun.
• Growing Advice: Plant in moist to dry soil, though it tolerates poor soil and needs little to no fertilizer. Make sure to provide adequate support, as trumpet vine will pull down weak structures.
• Prize Picks:Choose Yellow Trumpet (Campsis radicans f. flava) for a sunny spray of yellow blooms.

Photo: RDA GID

Salvia

Want your summer garden to kick off with a bang and end with a grand finale? Then plant red salvia, an annual that'll light up your yard like it's the Fourth of July.

There are few garden flowers as bold or reliable as these brilliant red spikes some gardeners call firecracker plant. They stand at attention in a large border garden and are just as striking when confined to containers. And they provide the perfect crimson color for a patriotic red, white and blue garden.

• Common Name: Red salvia, scarlet sage, firecracker plant.
• Botanical Name:Salvia splendens.
• Hardiness: Grown as an annual in all zones.
• Bloom Time: Summer to autumn.
• Size: 8 to 30 inches high, 8 to 12 inches wide.
• Flowers: Bright red, spiky clusters of tubular flowers. Some cultivars are available in orange, white, pink, lavender or blue.
• Light Needs: Full sun. Where summers are hot, some shade is appreciated.
• Growing Advice: Sold as bedding plants. Plant at same level as growing in containers and pinch tops to encourage branching. Mulch to retain moisture and keep soil cool.
• Prize Picks:Incredible red varieties include Bonfire, with its 24-inch-tall late-blooming spires, and the compact Firecracker series, which grows only 12 inches tall. For those seeking variety, the Sizzler and Salsa series bloom in an interesting palette of colors, including orange, white, pink, lavender, and blue.

Photo: Park Seed

Fuchsia

An easy favorite for hanging baskets and hummers alike, fuchsia's showy blooms will be sure to capture your heart, too. There are over 100 kinds, from trailing hybrids to upright varieties (some may be trained as trees or shaped into hedges), from pink to red to purple or orange. Add a splash of fuchsia to your summer garden.

• Common Name: Fuchsia, lady's eardrops.
• Botanical Name:Fuchsia.
• Hardiness: Zones 8 to 10; grow as annual elsewhere.
• Bloom Time: Summer to first frost.
• Size: Trailing varieties: 6 to 24 inches high; shrubs: 8 inches to 10 feet high.
• Flowers: Pink, white, red, purple, and orange tubular and pendulous single or double blossoms.
• Light Needs: Full sun to partial shade.
Growing Advice: Pinch the stems back of young plants to encourage production of side branches. Stop pinching 8 to 10 weeks before you want it to flower.
• Prize Picks:A well-stocked garden center will offer you many pretty choices, including Swingtime (shown). Relatively cold-hardy Fuchsia magellanica has abundant red and violet flowers on 3-foot stems and can be grown as a perennial as far north as Zone 6 in a sheltered location with mulch for winter protection.

Photo: Park Seed

Columbine

Carefree yet consistent- that's what gardeners love about this graceful perennial. Not only is columbine easy to cultivate, it thrives almost anywhere, from rocky spots to open slopes, woodland paths and backyard gardens.

• Common Name: Columbine, granny's nightcap, blue starry, rock bells.
• Botanical Name:Aquilegia.
• Hardiness: Zones 3 to 9.
• Bloom Time: Late spring to early summer.
• Size: 1 to 3 feet high, 6 to 24 inches tall.
• Flowers: Yellow, red, pink, blue, purple, and white, single or bicolored; bell-shaped blooms with spurs on the petals.
• Light Needs: Shade to full sun.
• Growing Advice: Sow seeds in early spring or summer (2 to 3 months before first fall frost). Columbine reseeds easily but offspring plants may produce less showy flowers.
• Prize Picks:One of the most popular is Rocky Mountain columbine (also called Colorado or blue columbine), prized for its blue and white bicolored flowers. Golden columbine has yellow long-spurred flowers that face upward and outward.

Photo: Park Seed

Hollyhock

Up, up, and away! The stately blooms of hollyhock will take just about any garden to new heights. These old-time favorites unfurl richly colored flowers on lanky stems that can grow over 8 feet tall.

Hollyhocks are a biennial, which means they grow foliage on short stems their first year, but don't flower until the following year. To have a continuous hollyhock show, plant seeds in the same area for two consecutive years.

• Common Name: Hollyhock.
• Botanical Name:Alcea rosea.
• Hardiness: Zones 3 to 9.
• Bloom Time: Early to midsummer.
• Size: 3 to 8 feet high, 1 to 3 feet wide.
• Flowers: Funnel-shaped or double blooms in numerous bright and pastel hues including red, pink, yellow, white, and purple.
• Light Needs: Full sun.
• Growing Advice: Plant seeds in midsummer for blooms the following year. Or force blooms during the first summer by sowing indoors in late winter and transplanting in early spring.
• Prize Picks:Try Chater's Double for double blooms or Nigra for striking dark maroon flowers that appear almost black.

Photo: RDA GID

Flowering tobacco

For a no-fuss way to liven up your garden with butterflies and hummingbirds, plant flowering tobacco. This relative of the tobacco plant is also known as nicotiana. The stems rise from a rosette of leaves and are covered with star-shaped flowers in shades of pink, red, maroon, lavender, white, yellow, and even green.

Many varieties produce fragrant blooms all season long on tall stems that sway in the breeze. They also make a nice backdrop when planted in clusters beyond border plants.

• Common Name: Flowering tobacco.
• Botanical Name:Nicotiana alata.
• Hardiness: Annual.
• Bloom Time: Summer to first frost.
• Size: 10 inches to 5 feet high, 6 to 24 inches wide.
• Flowers: White, red, pink, lavender, green, and yellow.
• Light Needs: Partial shade to full sun.
• Growing Advice: Prefers rich, moist soil that's well-draining.
• Prize Picks:Nicki Red bears small fragrant red flowers. Nicki White is lovely, especially at dusk. Nicki Lime has unique, pale-green flowers.

Photo: Park Seed

Honeysuckle trumpet

Plant honeysuckle and you won't be the only one to succumb to its elegant blooms. Hummingbirds and butterflies are real suckers for the stuff, too. This plant has a nice long bloom season.

• Common Name: Trumpet honeysuckle, coral honeysuckle.
• Botanical Name:Lonicera sempervirens.
• Hardiness: Zones 4 to 9.
• Bloom Time: Summer.
• Size: Climbs up to 12 feet.
• Flowers: Deep-red with yellow throats.
• Light Needs: Full sun or partial shade.
• Growing Advice: Space plants 3 to 4 feet apart in holes the same depth as the rootballs. Plant container-grown honeysuckle throughout the growing season or transplant in spring before growth begins.
• Prize Picks:For yellow blooms, choose Sulfurea. The spectacular Dropmore Scarlet has scarlet flowers with orange throats.

Photo: Park Seed

Red-hot poker

It's easy to see why many people know this plant as "torch lily." Birds love this stately flower, which alternates in color from yellow at the base to bright red at the tip.

This beauty has one of the most unique bloom shapes around. Plant it in your garden, and it will instantly steal the show, not only for its beauty but for the many hummers it attracts.

• Common Name: Red-hot poker, torch flower.
• Botanical Name:Kniphofia.
• Hardiness: Zones 5 to 9, depending on cultivar.
• Bloom Time: Late spring to autumn, depending on cultivar.
• Size: 2 to 6 feet high, 1 to 3 feet wide.
• Flowers: Red, orange, yellow, white, or greenish white or bicolored.
• Light Needs: Full sun to partial shade.
• Growing Advice: Prefers sandy soil. Mulch plants for first winter.
• Prize Picks:Little Maid has creamy white flowers. Royal Standard catches the eye with bicolored scarlet and yellow flowers.