The Perfect Hummingbird Habitat
Creating The Perfect Hummingbird Habitat
A visit to your local plant nursery can help you build a hummingbird habit in your backyard in just one season. A few essential plants that will attract hummingbirds and beautify your landscape simultaneously are all it takes to create an environment that will attract the tiny jewel-toned birds. One must-have plant for a thriving hummingbird habitat is the hummingbird vine. Start with it and build the habitat around it with these plant ideas.
Hummingbird Vine
The hummingbird vine (campsites radicans) is an easy-to-grow vine that produces trumpet-shaped flowers that will quickly attract hummingbirds to your landscape. The vine thrives, reaching a mature height of 20-40 feet, but it is quickly tamed and kept at the desired height with springtime pruning. Hummingbird vines prefer partial shade and bloom from July through November.
Two other vine choices for creating a hummingbird habitat are clematis and honeysuckle. Native Flowers
Visiting your local plant nursery will also help you discover which plants are native to your area. Planting native flowers will make maintaining the hummingbird habitat easier and better attract hummingbirds native to your particular region. Group flowers together in the habitat for best results.
Flowers that Attract Hummingbirds
The color red seems to be a favorite among the tiny bird population, but the fragrance is optional. Hummingbirds have a sick sense of smell; it's the vibrant colors that draw them in for a meal. Select flowers with red, yellow, purple, and orange blooms and blooms at different times throughout the spring and summer, so there will always be something in bloom for the visiting hummingbirds. Petunias, bee balm (Monarda Didyma), salvia (Salvia Spleens), snapdragons (Antirrhinum), and columbine (Aquilegia) are good flower choices to pair with a hummingbird vine for nectar. If a bush is desirable for the hummingbird habitat, a butterfly bush (Buddleja) makes a perfect choice (don’t let the bush name fool you, hummers are attracted to the flowers as much as butterflies). Nesting Material
When creating a hummingbird habitat (Hummingbird Plant) remember the little birds need nesting material and food if you want them to hang around for the summer. Trees, shrubs, and plants that provide soft stuff, like the catkins on willow and elm trees or the sweet plums from ornamental grasses and the soft rosettes of lamb’s ear, will provide a wealth of nest-building material. For the birds, so you can enjoy more than one generation of hummers.