Backyard Hummingbird Plants
from the Peterson Garden on
Mtn Home AFB, Idaho (SW desert; "Magic
Valley")
Summer 2004
Based on the success of Salvia guaranitica last year, I decided to grow many more this year. I bought small plants from a variety of sources (including eBay) early in the spring and planted them in "Wall-O-Water" planters well before our last frost. These plants grew just great and were prolific bloomers throughout the summer season. They were among the staples of my hummer garden this year. I also included many of the same plants from last year, with the exception of the Abutilons which were not readily available in town this year as they were last year. But the Salvia uliginosa (Bog Sage) and Salvia guaranitica "kobalt' and 'Black-and-Blue' grew back from the roots in the spring just fine.
My favorite plants this year (besides S. guaranitica) would have to be the Agastaches! In particular, I liked Agastache x 'Desert Sunrise' and Agastache rupestris, both available from High Country Gardens. This plant was a baby last year that bloomed and was so-so in attracting hummers. But it survived the winter marvelously and came back with a vengence this summer. It was a great addition to the garden -- and a wall of these plants would probably draw in hummingbirds for miles! I also experimented with a number of other hummingbird-attracting plants this year, with varying success.
I dug a new flowerbed along the back fence in our backyard and planted a row of taller Salvia guaranitica in the Wall-O-Waters there before the end of first frost. Then after first frost I planted a line of Salvia splendens "yer basic red Walmart salvia" in the front. A Salvia coccinea 'Forest Fire" is seen to the left of the S. guaranitica. The brownish stalks with puple left-over flowers at extreme left is a Salvia nemorosa that came back from seed. I didn't have the heart to pull it (and didn't need the space for other plants), so I left it even though it's barely looked at by hummingbirds. It's pretty when in bloom.
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Agastache x 'Desert Sunrise' (Hybrid Hummingbird Mint - 'Desert Sunrise') was a new plant I grew in 2004. This plant flowers profusely, but it's a very wispy plant in my yard without the neat compact appearance of Agastache rupestris. Regardless, it was indeed one of the favorites in my yard in terms of hummingbird-attractiveness!
I obtained a new variety of Salvia coccinea this year, this variety called 'Forest Fire.' It makes a beautiful bed, with flowers that are somewhat richer, with darker calyx than the typical 'Lady in Red' variety, but as a hummingbird-attracting plant, I just didn't see it as terribly useful. It certainly wasn't one of the favorites by the hummers, even though I thought it was beautiful.
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Salvia darsyi in a clay pot. I purchased several of this plant, but it appears rather frail (compared to many other woody salvias), and this is the only one that survived shipping. I can only imagine what a great hummer-attracting plant this would be if I could grow a huge bed of them! This plant rarely lacked for hummingbird visitors, and several flowers were probed extensively on each visit.
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Salvia guaranitica 'Argentine Skies' disappointed me only because it flowered too late in the season to be of much use for the hummingbirds. It also took a while to get growing, so perhaps that has something to do with it. I'll be anxious to see if this plant survives the winter (although I wouldn't be surprised if it did -- we're having a very warm winter here this year, and this particular bed is sheltered under the eaves against the east wall of our house -- in fact, astute humgardeners may notice a Cuphea micropetala plant peaking out over this salvia! This Cuphea is listed as a zone 8 perrenial, and it survived our last winter here in zone 6! Unfortunately it didn't flower until after all our hummers left, and then was quickly knocked back by our first frost)..
I planted a Lonicera sempervirens 'Lemonade' last year on a trellis, and it did OK, but this year it really took off and bloomed profusely throughout the year. I was excited to see hummingbirds use it regularly; the Anna's Hummingbird that I hosted in my yard for two days in late fall used this plant and not feeders. I even had some non-hummingbirds, such as this White-lined Sphinx moth (aka, "hummingbird moth"), check out the flowers on this plant.
The side bed in the backyard was the focus of hummingbird activity this year. The potted plant in the white pot at left is a very woody Salvia microphylla 'San Carlos Festival' (San Carlos Festival Littleleaf Sage). This is one of two 'San Carlos Festival' salvias I grew in pots. It was very well-liked by the hummingbirds. The peachy flower beside it (under the hummingbird feeder) is Agastache rupestris (Sunset Hyssop) -- and this is only about 3/4 total size. Later in the season this plant got just incredibly beautiful and was regularly visited by hummingbirds. Even at the time of this photo (17 August), it was a hummingbird magnet -- to the extent that they were avoiding my feeders (and the trap); hence the mistnet you see strung between the poles beside the bed. The Agastache x 'Desert Sunrise' shown in the pictures near the top of this page can be seen at far right -- the wispy purplish plant, but again, this is early in the year and this plant was even more beautiful as the month progressed. The terra-cotta pot contains a Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red' that is a standard hummer plant. Above it in the hanging pots and the pot on the fence are "Million Bells" that are there more for looks than anything else.
The above photos show just a few of my favorite plants in my back yard this year -- I had other gardens throughout the rest of our side and front yards with additional plants that didn't fare as well, partly because I spent most of my time in the back yard (here!) watching these plants. Perhaps the plants in the front yard gardens were better than they appeared the few times I was able to observe them...
If I had to recommend a handful of plants for a southern Idaho (zone 6) hummingbird garden, these would have to be my top three: Salvia guaranitica (any of the blue ones), Salvia microphylla 'San Carlos Festival' and Agastache rupestris or 'Desert Sunrise.' Grow a couple beds packed with those three plants, and your hummers will never leave (figuratively, of course). I also grew several penstemons, some of which are native to Idaho, but I was disappointed with their short blooming periods. When they WERE in bloom, they were enjoyed by the hummers, but for pure length of bloom and overall hummer-attractiveness -- go with the three mentioned above!
Now I get to start all over again next summer near Anchorage, Alaska -- zone 2/3 -- with just a tantalizingly small chance of actually hosting a hummingbird. The nearest breeding populations are reportedly about an hours drive away!
Have fun!
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