22 Plants That Attract Hummingbirds (With Photos)

If you want more hummingbirds to come to your yard, offer them plants that they love! 

Hummingbirds need to eat a lot to maintain their energy for flying, breeding, raising their young, and migrating. They feed every 10 to 15 minutes during the daylight hours, visiting 1,000 to 2,000 blooms every day.

Read on to learn about a variety of plants that hummingbirds will visit in your yard to drink sweet nectar from.

Information About Plants That Attract Hummingbirds

When choosing plants, opt for ones that will grow well in your hardiness growing zone. Plant a diverse variety of hummingbird-attracting plants for the best outcomes. 

Consider planting plants that bloom at different times throughout the season to offer natural nectar for a longer period.

Make sure you know the sunlight, soil, and nutritional needs of your plants to help them grow healthy and strong. This ensures that they have enough energy to produce nectar.

Hummingbirds tend to prefer red or tubular-shaped flowers since they offer higher nectar content.

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It is highly recommended that red flowers are in your hummingbird-friendly landscape. However, they will also visit other colors such as orange, yellow, purple, pink, and blue. 

The list of plants here is not all-inclusive but incorporates some of the most popular plants that hummingbirds like. Some plants may be listed as annuals or perennials depending on the zone they are growing in.

Keep cats, dogs, and small children away from plants, since many are toxic if consumed.

1. Bee Balm

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 9
When It Blooms: summer – fall
Color: red, pink, purple, white
Type: perennial

Bee balm is a North American native member of the mint family.

Its flowers attract pollinators, including hummingbirds. Deadheading the spent flowers makes the blooms continue all summer long.

2. Begonia

Hardiness Zone: 6 – 9
When It Blooms: summer
Color: red, pink, yellow, orange, white
Type: annual (warmer climates: perennial)

There are approximately 2,000 species of begonia, but the wax begonia (Begonia x semperflorens-cultorum) is the one most commonly used in gardens. 

This small plant produces tubular blooms and grows well in partial shade. They are easy to care for and deer-resistant. Foliage may be red or green. Opt for red foliage, if possible, to help attract hummers.

3. Bleeding Heart

Hardiness Zone: 2 – 9
When It Blooms: spring
Color: red, pink, rose, violet, wine, yellow, white, or a combination
Type: perennial

This herbaceous perennial plant is easy to grow in shady or semi-shady spots.

This delicate spring-blooming plant has arched branches with dripping heart-shaped blooms. 

4. Cardinal Flower

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 9
When It Blooms: summer to early fall
Color: red, pink, purple, blue, white
Type: short-lived perennial

Hummingbirds are the primary pollinator of this red tubular bloom.

Even though it is a perennial, it does not last many years and produces prolific amounts of seeds to reseed.

5. Catmint

Hardiness Zone: 4 – 8
When It Blooms: late spring – summer
Color: pink, white, lavender-blue
Type: perennial

This fragment perennial herb is easy to grow, deer-resistant, and grows quickly. Its spikes of flowers will stand upright creating a bush-like appearance.

Keep in mind that cats may also be drawn to the scent of this plant which can be dangerous to birds since they are predators.

6. Cigar Plant

Hardiness Zone: 10 -12
When It Blooms: spring – summer
Color: orange-red
Type: annual, tender perennial (frost-free areas)

This native Mexican plant is also referred to as a firecracker plant, with long, tubular orange-red flowers.

In colder climates, this plant is an annual bloomer but can thrive year-round in warmer parts of the country.

7. Columbine

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 8
When It Blooms: spring – summer
Color: red, pink, orange, yellow, purple, blue, white
Type: perennial

This delicate-looking flower is easy to grow. There are many hybrids and species of these flowers, but red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) is the hummingbirds’ favorite.

This plant will bloom more flowers if the spent ones are pruned off.

8. Daylily

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 10
When It Blooms: spring – late summer
Color: multicolored, near-white, pastels, pinks, red, crimson, yellow, orange, purple, blue
Type: perennial

This low-maintenance plant is tolerant of different types of growing conditions, and is disease- and pest-resistant. This makes it a versatile and easy plant to maintain in yards. 

It develops colorful trumpet-shaped blooms. There are over 80,000 varieties of daylilies, so opt for ones that are red-, purple- or orange-toned and best for your growing zone.

9. Foxglove

Hardiness Zone: 4 – 10
When It Blooms: late spring – early summer
Color: pink, rose, primrose, cream, purple, white 
Type: biennial

This plant adds height to landscaping, growing 2 to 5 feet tall. It has tubular flowers shaped like bells, facing downwards in beautiful clusters. 

It is important to know that these plants only bloom in their second year. These flowers are toxic so keep pets and small children away.

10. Fuschia

Hardiness Zone: 6 – 9
When It Blooms: spring – fall
Color: red, pink, purple, magenta, white
Type:  annuals

Fuschia plants produce beautiful delicate flowers that dangle from elongated stems. They grow well in hanging baskets. 

These plants often need to be planted in areas with some protection from the wind.

11. Geranium

Hardiness Zone: 1 – 9 (annual), 10 – 11 (perennial)
When It Blooms: spring – fall
Color: red, pink, purple, mauve, white, orange, reddish-black
Type: annual or perennial depending upon the zone

Geraniums may be planted in pots, hanging baskets, or gardens. They bloom in several different colors and have different variations of leaf types and patterns. 

Deadheading spent blooms keeps the plant producing more all season long. Annual zones can overwinter the roots in a cool, dry location to replant the following spring.

12. Hosta

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 9
When It Blooms: summer
Color: white, cream, pink, pale blue, lavender, purple, red, yellow
Type: perennials

Hostas are hardy plants that grow very well in shade. Their variegated or green leaves are full and bushy and the plants grow bigger each year. 

Hostas are easy to split and grow into new plants, allowing home landscapers to easily spread these without any cost. 

Each hosta plant produces blooms that stretch up tall from the green base. Hummingbirds love these small tubular flowers.

13. Lantana

Hardiness Zone: 1 – 8 (annual); 9 – 11 (biennial, perennial)
When It Blooms: late spring to frost (cold climates); year-round (warm climates)
Color: combinations of pink, yellow, orange, red, purple, white
Type: annual, biennial, short-lived perennial

Lantanas are shrub-like evergreen plants. They have individual tiny blooms that form tight clusters. Some varieties show one color or feature clusters with hot pink and yellow or red and orange.

In winter areas, lantana is an annual plant but will grow as a biennial or short-lived perennial in warmer climates.

14. Lilac

Hardiness Zone: 3 – 7
When It Blooms: spring
Color: purple, lavender, lilac, magenta, pink, white
Type: perennial

This plant grows as a deciduous shrub with fragrant clustered blooms of tiny flowers.

It can reach heights of 15 feet tall. Yearly pruning helps these grow strong and vibrant.

15. Lupine

Hardiness Zone: 4 – 9
When It Blooms: spring – summer
Color: bicolor, red, pink, purple white, yellow, blue
Type: annual, perennial

Garden center varieties of lupines are hybrids of wild lupine. These native tubular flowers form on stem spikes in a variety of sizes and colors. 

This tender perennial grows well in many areas, but only last as an annual in colder climates.

16. Penstemon

Hardiness Zone: 4 – 9
When It Blooms: early to mid-summer
Color: red, pink, blue, purple, white
Type: perennial

This native, long-blooming plant grows in a variety of heights and colors with tubular nectar-filled blooms. 

Approximately 280 species of penstemon are available. These different species will bloom at different times, so opt for ones that work well for your growing zone.

17. Petunia

Hardiness Zone: 1 – 8 (annual), 9 – 11 (perennial)
When It Blooms: spring – fall
Color: bicolor varieties, red, purple, pink, white, yellow, blue
Type: annual, tender perennials

These annual flowers are easy to care for and grow. They can be used in hanging baskets, planters, and along garden perimeters. 

They come in many colors but opt for hummingbird favorites in red, purple, or pink. They are most commonly grown as annuals because they cannot tolerate frost, but some will grow as perennials in warmer climates.

18. Rose Of Sharon

Hardiness Zone: 5 – 9
When It Blooms: late spring – early fall
Color: bicolor, white, red, pink, lavender, blue 
Type: perennial

Rose of Sharon is a deciduous shrub that responds well to pruning and can grow 8 to 10 feet tall. They can spread well, allowing people to thin or add more to their yards at no cost. 

Their 5-petaled, trumpet-shaped, showy blooms have a differently colored center that makes them beautiful to look at and attractive to hummingbirds.

19. Salvia

Hardiness Zone: 5- 9, 4 (cold-hardy species), 10 (heat-tolerant species)
When It Blooms: summer – fall
Color: multi-color, blue, red, purple, orange, pink, yellow, white, green
Type: perennial

Salvia is a plant that is a part of the mint family. Their leaves give off a noticeable fragrance if crushed or cut. They produce tall spikes of clustered flowers. 

Hummingbirds will visit just about any species of salvia, but seem to really love the Salvia microphylla, which is 2-toned colors of red and white, or Salvia greggii, in red, pink, white, purple, or orange. 

20. Snapdragon

Hardiness Zone: 7 – 11
When It Blooms: spring – fall
Color: multi-colored, red, pink, burgundy, yellow, bronze, orange, white
Type: short-lived perennials

The snapdragon flower has a mouth-like part that can open when pinched gently. Bloom time is extended in these plants as they open from the bottom up. 

These plants come in a variety of sizes and colors.

21. Trumpet Vine

Hardiness Zone: 4 – 9
When It Blooms: summer through fall
Color: red, orange, yellow
Type: perennial

This plant is often referred to as a “trumpet creeper” and grows quickly in the summer until the fall. Hummingbirds love the flowers of this plant. 

This vine needs support to grow, often climbing a trellis, fence, or arbor.

22. Zinnia

Hardiness Zone: 2-8 (annual), 9 – 11 (perennial)
When It Blooms: late spring – first frost
Color: red, pink, purple, lavender, orange, yellow, white, green
Type: annual or perennial depending upon the zone

This easy-to-grow flower is a heavy bloomer with a single bright flower on strong stems.

Many varieties offer different blooming forms such as button-, cactus-, or beehive-shaped in different heights and colors.

Conclusion

There are many ways to make a yard attractive to hummingbirds, and that includes plants! Rose of Sharon, daylilies, and red columbines are examples of easy-to-grow and easy-to-care-for plants.

Add in a couple of hummingbird feeders with homemade nectar and a bird bath and your yard will become an oasis for hummingbirds.

Get Our FREE Bird Feeder Cheat Sheet

Want more birds in your backyard? Get simple tips on attracting feathered friends and maximizing your bird feeding setup. Our free cheat sheet has got you covered!

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