Attracting Hummingbirds to Your Garden

Visualize watching bright green hummingbirds in your garden moving from flower to flower in search of the tasty nectar within. These tiny birds are found in a wide variety of environments from the rain forest to the dry desert. They have slender beaks and tiny feet suitable for walking but not perching. Hummingbirds can fly backwards, left, right, straight up, straight down, and even upside down.

If you want to attract hummingbirds to your garden the main thing to consider is what type of flowers you should plant. A bonus would be adding places where they can perch and rest during the day, such as large plants or trees. The hummingbird is guided by color and are especially attracted to certain shades of red.

Hummingbirds are fun and welcome to nearly all gardens. By planting flowering shrubs and plants we can easily attract hummingbirds to our gardens over and over again. Below is a short list of their preferred flowering plants by common name, separated by region:

Even though flowers are the natural means to attract hummingbirds to your garden, man-made feeders filled with a mixture of water and sugar (sucrose) are an essential alternative.

The formula for the mixture used in feeders is 4 parts water (not distilled) to 1 part table sugar. Boil the mixture for one to two minutes, allow to cool and store formula in refrigerator.

The mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week. Do not use honey, artificial sweeteners or red food coloring in your mixture, this could be harmful to the birds.

When planning your garden, be imaginative and have fun planting and growing to attract hummingbirds.

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