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 Small Space Hummingbird Gardening
Plant a pretty pot, hanging basket or
window box to attract hummingbirds in a hurry.
Hummingbirds love to flit, hover and
zoom around colorful container gardens. Just plant a pot full
of their favorite flowers on your patio or deck, then sit
back and enjoy the show. Bringing these diminutive birds into
view requires little know-how and little gardening space,
but there are a few things to consider before you start. Knowing
what kind of containers to use, where to place them, and how
to choose the best flowering plants will improve your chances
of attracting hummingbirds to your garden.
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Ten favorite flower varieties |
Hummingbirds are creatures of habit. Once your container garden is discovered, the little birds are likely to return again and again. Make sure they stay interested by growing plants with an extended season. When selecting flowers, keep in mind that hummingbirds are not attracted to fragrance, but rather to color and nectar. Although at least 150 North American flowering plants can attract hummingbirds, consider these favorites for hardiness and nectar production.
- Coral Honeysuckle. Tough, cold hardy, loaded with nectar and trouble-free.
- Shrimp Plant. Best grown in hanging baskets in warm weather.
- Cardinal Climber. Cold hardy. Hummingbirds are attracted to dazzling red color.
- Cardinal Flower. Bright red blossoms with tons of nectar.
- Texas Sage. Annual that grows anywhere. A must for your garden.
- Petunia. Great in hanging baskets and pots.
- Impatiens. Annual that does well in shade. Needs lots of water.
- Autumn Sage. Grows well in warm weather. Comes in several colors.
- Anise-scented Sage. Tall, luscious purple nectar factory. Try this one.
- Bee Balm. Annual. Needs sun and a container of its own.
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Hanging baskets and window boxes filled
with petunias, fuchsias, or nasturtiums create a cascade of
flowers for hungry hummingbirds. Large pots or old wheelbarrows
brimming with impatiens, begonias, or snapdragons can become
a hummingbird café. Clay containers of red or scarlet
geraniums provide a delightful way to attract your fast-flying
neighbors. Or attach a special planter of nectar laden salvia
on the inside railing of your porch to create an elevated
hummingbird garden.
Grow hummingbird-friendly vines on trellises
for a whole new range of container gardening options. Favorite
annual vines, such as Cypress vine and cardinal climbers grow
well in any sunny spot on your deck. Choose just about any
member of the morning glory family for a burst of color that
hummingbirds find hard to resist. Coral honeysuckle is another
trellis growing vine that thrives in small patio gardens.
Loaded with bright red flowers filled with nectar, it blooms
in early spring - just in time for the first migratory batch
of hummingbirds.
Hanging baskets
It's best to hang baskets at eye level
so you can watch the birds at close range. Since hummingbirds
are amazingly bold, it's common for them to perch or feed
on a hanging basket located just inches from your favorite
sitting spot. Whether the basket is hung near a bench, patio
or porch, it's likely to bring hummingbirds within easy sight.
The most popular hanging planters are
made of wire, terra cotta, glazed ceramic, wood or plastic.
Planted on all sides, a wire mesh basket lined with sphagnum
moss and filled with potting soil can create a lush feast
of flowers. Unglazed terra cotta pots are a good choice if
you water them frequently and hang them securely from a sturdy
support.
Try using a red or orange glazed ceramic
hanging pot to attract hummingbirds. This type of container
often has a saucer to catch water and retain moisture. Wooden
containers made from rot resistant redwood, cedar or cypress
can be planted to entice hummingbirds with a combination of
bright flowers and trailing plants. Plastic pots are another
good choice for hanging because they are lightweight, versatile
and affordable.
Remember that any type of hanging basket
takes on additional weight when wet. Take steps to fasten
it securely overhead with sturdy hooks or screw eyes over
a strong support. If your pot doesn't have it's own hanger,
use galvanized wire or chain to suspend it from the desired
location. Make sure to choose a spot that offers enough support
for the plant and won't cause staining on the surface below.
| Amazing
hummingbird facts |
| Hummingbirds
are in a class by themselves. Just about everything
about this smallest member of the bird family
is unusual and superlative. Hummingbirds have
the largest flight muscles, the biggest brain,
the fastest wing beat, the most rapid heartbeat,
the highest body temperature, the greatest appetite,
and the most unquenchable thirst.
They can fly forward and
backward, stop in mid air, fly sideways and even
upside down.
Hummingbirds can reach speeds of up to 60 miles
an hour while their heart beats over 1,000 times
a minute. The humming sound they create is due
to 75 wing beats per second in normal flight.
During a male mating display the wing beat exceeds
200 times per second. A resting hummingbird takes
250 breaths per minute. Ruby throated hummingbirds
weigh only 3 grams and their egg is half the size
of a jellybean.
Hummingbirds consume half
their weight in nectar each day. Their navigational
skills and stamina allow them to migrate thousands
of miles each year nonstop over land and water.
You can expect to see these feisty visitors returning
to the same flowering containers and feeders year
after year.
Contrary to popular opinion,
hummingbirds don't suck nectar, they place their
open bill into the flower or feeder and lick up
nectar at a high rate of speed. Another common
belief is that hummingbirds migrate on the backs
of geese. Not true. Geese and hummingbirds migrate
at different times, live in different habitats
and migrate to different areas.
It is true however, that
hummingbirds and butterflies can be attracted
to the same garden. They often share similar tastes
for some flowers like butterfly weed and gayfeathers.
One notable difference is that hummingbird flowers
are without scent, while butterfly flowers are
heavily perfumed. Both hummingbirds and butterflies
are attracted to red flowers, but will eat from
any color of nectar-producing flowers.
Don't worry about your feeders
and flowers interfering with hummingbird migration.
Their migratory instinct is actually triggered
by changes in day length and the temperature.
Like other migrants, hummingbirds are vulnerable
to habitat loss and pesticides. Their chances
of survival increase every time they zip over
to a tasty meal provided by your small container
garden or well-stocked feeder. |
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Window boxes
When planted with colorful flowers,
window boxes entice hummingbirds to a feast of accessible
nectar all summer long. A number of hummingbird favorites,
such as petunias, salvias, geraniums, dwarf marigolds, verbena
and trailing ivy can be combined to create a miniature garden
in just one window box. Begonias, fuchsias, impatiens, lobelia,
dusty miller, and nasturtium are also among classic window
box summer plants.
Although a wide variety of flowers can
be packed into a small area, window box plantings are more
attractive to hummingbirds when tall background plants, low
growing foreground plants and trailing plants are used. Plants
of staggered heights and habits are simple to grow and maintain.
Include plants with tube shaped blossoms, lots of color and
an extended bloom season for the most appeal.
Window box gardens permit you to watch
hummingbirds zip around flowers from either inside or outside
of your home. Just be sure your window box can be easily reached
for weeding, watering, adding soil or changing plantings.
Since window boxes are usually exposed to full sun, drying
winds and the reflected heat of your house, they may need
watering once a day in the summer.
Ready made window boxes come in a variety
of inexpensive shapes, sizes and materials. Your best bet
is to check out your local garden and home supply stores.
Or, you can build your own window box from decay-resistant
wood. Window boxes can either rest on a windowsill or be fastened
to your house in a safe and permanent fashion. It's also important
to make sure it's properly supported from the bottom, has
l/2-inch drain holes for every foot of box, and a layer of
gravel in the bottom to keep lightweight potting soil from
washing out.
An added attraction
At first, you may need a little help
luring hummingbirds to your flowering container garden. If
so, try placing one or two hummingbird feeders nearby. The
combination of feeders and nectar producing flowers can be
irresistible to sharp-eyed hummingbirds. Feeders act as an
important supplement and are especially useful before flowers
bloom and when blooms start to diminish. The inquisitive nature
of hummingbirds will quickly lead them to investigate this
new source of food.
Choose a small feeder that has enough
red plastic parts to attract hungry passersby. Make sure it's
sturdy with an easy to clean glass or plastic reservoir. Glass
is longer lasting and can be sterilized, but is heavy and
breakable. Feeders with plastic reservoirs are less expensive
than glass, but tend to discolor with age. Look for a feeder
with an 8-ounce reservoir rather than the larger one-quart
size. You'll need to fill a small reservoir more frequently,
but the sugar-water supply will be fresher.
To prepare a batch of sugar-water for
your hummingbird feeder, mix one part granulated white sugar
to four parts water, then boil the solution for one or two
minutes, making sure it doesn't turn into syrup. Cool the
mixture before filling the feeder and store surplus in your
refrigerator. It's not necessary or advisable to add red food
coloring to the sugar water. Do not use honey or artificial
sweeteners - honey promotes a fungus growth that's harmful
to hummingbirds, while artificial sweeteners have no food
value.
Refill the feeder as soon as it's empty
to keep up a dependable food source. During hot weather change
the nectar at least once a week. To keep your feeder clean
just rinse with hot water and scrub with a bottle brush each
time you change nectar. Don't fill the feeder more than half
full, because hummingbirds won't be able to drink all the
sugar water before it needs to be changed again.
Be sure to hang the feeder near your
flowering containers. The same trellis you use for growing
hummingbird vines can also be a support for small feeders.
When your mini-garden isn't in bloom, tie a bright red ribbon
on the feeder as an added attraction to hummingbirds. Leave
your feeder up until well after the first frost in fall because
most of these tiny birds don't migrate before then.
Finally, talk to the experts at your
garden center for more information about small space hummingbird
gardens and feeder selections in your area.
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