|
Planning a
Hummingbird Garden Party
Plants for your Hummingbird Party
Monarda
(particulry red varieties such as Jacob Kline and
Gardenview Scarlet)
Trumpet Vine
Russian Sage
Agastache
Annual Salvia (particularly Black and Blue
and Lady in Red)
Penstemon (July-Sept blooming)
Liatris
Four-o’clocks
Perennial Salvia (late summer blooming)
Butterfly Bush
Honeysuckle Vine (late summer blooming)
Also annuals such as petunias,
tobacco plant. lantana, scarlet runner beans
and snap dragons if you plant a variety
that has nectar.
|
|
Everyone knows that if you want
to have a party, you have to send out invitations.
If you want to have a hummingbird party in your
garden this summer, now would be a good time to
start working on the invitations. For many years,
hummingbird feeders were a far more common site
around Wyobraska homes than were hummingbirds, but
in the past few years reports of hummingbird
sightings in western Nebraska are becoming an almost
everyday occurrence in the region. Bird experts say
the reason is likely that Wyobraska homeowners are
sending out better invitations.
It’s easy to see why
hummingbirds have so thoroughly caught the public’s
fancy. I still remember eating breakfast at a
Colorado mountain town restaurant a few years ago,
while watching a dozen or so hummingbirds dart and
hover around the three feeders located just outside
the window beside which we were seated. It was an
hour of non-stop entertainment.
Hummingbirds are strongly
attracted to red flowers, so red flowers which are
blooming at the time when hummingbirds are migrating
through the region are a hummingbird party
invitation which is almost certain to be accepted.
Hummingbirds typically migrate
through this area from mid-July through September.
The most common are the Broad-tailed Hummingbird and
Rufous Hummingbird, and sometimes Calliope. Many of
the hummingbirds we see will be immature birds and
are mostly green. Sometimes a brightly colored male
will visit our yards. The male Broad-tailed will
have a rosy-red throat, the male Rufous will be
mostly orange with an iridescent throat.
Red color will attract
Hummingbirds so a bed of red flowers will get them
to your garden but you need good nectar plants to
keep them there. Red, orange and purple tubular
blooms seem to be the plants they look for but they
will drink from other color flowers too. Monarda
(Bee Balm) and Trumpet Vines are some of their
favorites.
|
|
Hummingbirds also must eat
small insects and spiders to get enough protein to
make their long trip to the south so be sure not to
spray pesticides on your flowers or in your yard.
The pesticides could also make the birds sick or
kill them.
Hummingbirds like to bathe on
misted leaves so you can add a mister near some
broadleaf plants and watch them take a bath.
Hummingbirds will perch on
small dead branches between meals so leave a few for
them. They prefer the dead branches because they can
see predators more easily and keep an eye on their
nectar sources.
Hummingbirds are easy to
attract to a feeder, you can buy hummingbird nectar
mix or make your own use 1 cup of plain white sugar
in 4 cups of water and bring to a boil. Cool before
putting it in the feeder and store extra in the
refrigerator,
Hang the feeder in an area you
can enjoy watching the birds, near a patio or
window.
The feeder will need to be
cleaned and refilled at least once a week, you can
save nectar by only filling the feeder with as much
nectar as will be eaten in that time and store the
rest in the refrigerator until needed. A red feeder
that is easy to clean is probably the best.
|
