Hummingbird Habitat Garden

Delight your senses each summer with a backyard hummingbird haven. After their long migration from Central America and Mexico, these little guys are ready to hang out and eat. Hummingbirds are famous for visiting feeders, but providing additional food sources will enhance their habitat. With their long beaks, hummingbirds sip nectar from flowers. Although they are attracted to red flowers, it’s the sugar content in the nectar that keep hummingbirds returning for more. Here are some of their favorite flowers:
• Bee balm
• Salvia
• Honeysuckle
• Penstemon
• Jupiter’s beard
• Dianthus
• Nicotiana
• Callibrachoa
• Nepeta
• Verbena
Most of these can be found at your local garden center either already growing as ‘starts’ or in seed form.
Hummingbirds need safe perches to rest upon, such as trees and shrubs. A nearby water source like a bird bath or fountain is also important. In addition to sipping nectar, hummingbirds are insectivores, feeding on tiny insects such as aphids, thrips and spiders. Creating a hummingbird habitat will benefit your garden and these birds.