One of the simplest pleasures of gardening is watching pollinators and birds enjoy what you have grown. You’ve carefully selected plants with traits that attract hummingbirds – tubular or cup-shaped flowers, warm red, orange and yellow colors, and plants with strong stems to support their weight. You’ve coordinated plants with a parade of blooms all season to make them want to stick around. Now it is time to take a front row seat to the hummingbird show!
Check out the five nectar-rich recipes and plants below to grow on or alongside your patio to draw in the hummingbirds this season.
The All the Time container recipe features two hummingbird favorites: Unplugged® Pink salvia and Supertunia® Hoopla® Vivid Orchid™ petunia.
All the Time Container Recipe
It’s a hummingbird watch party in a pot! Moments after planting Unplugged salvias in our gardens at Proven Winners, hummingbirds seem to instantly discover these big blooms. It may be their open-lipped shape that allows such easy access to the nectar that does the trick.
It’s a ton of fun to watch the agile creatures dart between Unplugged Pink salvia flowers and the brilliant orchid purple, pure white rimmed blossoms of Supertunia Hoopla Vivid Orchid petunia all summer long.
Joining in on the fun, honeybees feed from the large, soft pink clusters of Superbena Pink Cashmere verbena in All the Time container recipe. Deep purple foliage from Plum Dandy alternanthera adds drama and depth.
The Neptune container recipe is a triple treat for pollinators and hummingbirds.
Neptune Container Recipe
We often say that if your goal is to attract pollinators, plant a salvia, and the same can be said for hummingbirds. On sunny days, you’ll find them all enjoying the intense violet blue flowers of Rockin’ Playin’ the Blues salvia. Its tall spikes rise two to four feet, catching the attention of hummingbirds whirring by, and the plant’s strong stems easily support the birds’ weight when they pause for a rest.
We’ve combined Rockin’ Playin’ the Blues with three additional flowers that attract pollinators and hummingbirds in our Neptune recipe for full sun to part sun. Together, they provide a plethora of nectar-rich flowers, creating a hummingbird feast that replenishes itself all season without deadheading.
Use a large patio pot for our Neptune recipe so that Rockin’ Playin’ the Blues salvia and its companions have plenty of room to flourish. You’ll need:
For over a decade, Vermillionaire Cuphea has retained its title of top hummingbird attractor in the Proven Winners lineup (though Rockin’ and Unplugged salvias are neck in neck in the running.) It was easy to catch the hummingbird pictured here in action - you can do the same when you plant Vermillionaire patio-side. We’re predicting a camera roll filled with hummingbird sightings by summer’s end!
Commonly known as large firecracker plant, Vermillionaire is a robust, almost shrublike plant that grows up to 28 inches tall and wide in a single season. Bright red-orange, cigar-shaped flowers line the stems from top to bottom non-stop all season. Hummingbirds rapidly flick their long, tubelike tongues deep into the blossoms to collect nectar.
If you live in USDA zones 8-11, you will enjoy Vermillionaire’s return every year. In colder zones, it is commonly grown as an annual in large containers and in the landscape. This heat lover enjoys full sun and is somewhat drought tolerant once established.
Hummingbirds can’t miss the stately flower stalks of Shadowland® ‘Miss America’ hosta.
If your patio is in the shade, here’s a beautiful perennial that can draw hummingbirds in early to midsummer when the plant is in bloom. Shadowland® ‘Miss America’ hosta is a majestic cultivar that is suitable for planting in a large patio pot or an adjacent border. Standing as tall as five feet in bloom, its white scapes are topped with light lavender, funnel-shaped flowers that attract hummingbirds and pollinating bees.
The heart-shaped leaves of Shadowland® ‘Miss America’ hosta are a work of art, featuring emerald green edges and light green streaks that dart into the white center. Collectively, they form a large mass that matures to 19 inches tall and 55 inches wide. This durable perennial is hardy in USDA zones 3-9 and thrives in partial shade to full shade.
Hummingbirds enjoy Luminary® ‘Ultraviolet’ tall garden phlox for months in the summertime.
With native roots across the eastern half of North America, all sorts of native bees, butterflies and hummingbirds enjoy tall garden phlox (Phlox paniculata). At first glance, it may be difficult to see why hummingbirds, which prefer tubular, funnel-shaped or cup-shaped flowers, would be attracted to phlox. But if you pick a single blossom out of a cluster, you’ll notice that the five flat petals are fused at the base into a long, narrow tube. In the bottom lies the nectar hummingbirds seek.
Pick a few Luminary ‘Ultraviolet’ flowers for bouquets and you’ll instantly notice its sweet scent. That trait is useful for attracting other pollinators, but not hummingbirds since they don’t have a good sense of smell. However, they do have a good memory and will return to this perennial’s showy blossoms year after year.
Named for the unbelievably brilliant magenta flowers that absolutely glow in the landscape, Luminary ‘Ultraviolet’ tall garden phlox will surely be a topic of conversation around the patio every summer. Plant it in full sun to part sun in USDA zones 3-8.
Contributor Bio: Susan Martin is an avid zone 6 gardener and content creator who enjoys spreading her passion for plants to others across North America.
By Natalie Carmolli, Proven Winners® ColorChoice®
Photographs courtesy of Proven Winners® ColorChoice®
We can add a pop of pink to existing gardens or mix deep pink flowers with mid-to-pale pinks to make a gorgeous monochromatic garden statement. To learn more Click here for an interesting article.
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