Most garden enthusiasts have spent a considerable amount of time preparing their garden oasis. Many hours can be spent pruning, planting, weeding, and watering a masterpiece of a garden. To a true gardener, this is pleasureful not tasking. By planting the right plants, you can attract desired birds to your garden such as the hummingbird. Hummingbirds are among the smallest of all birds and are named because of the humming sound their wings make when they fly. Their wings can flap up to 50 times per second while they are simply hovering and their total weight is less than 2.5 g. They are extremely fast and typically are brightly coloured. They would be a welcome addition to almost any garden!
How to Attract Hummingbirds
To attract hummingbirds you need to provide them with plants they can drink the nectar from. They love brightly coloured plants such as petunias, fuschias and verbenas which are all annuals and need to be planted each year. They are certain to brighten up your garden and be attractive not only to a hummingbird but to anyone who is lucky enough to spend time in your garden. If you wish to plant perennials in order to attract hummingbirds there is a wide selection of possibilities. Achillea makes a beautiful addition to any garden with it’s stunning colours of white, yellow, orange, pink or red. The daylily is always a beautiful addition to any garden and is likely to attract hummingbirds due to the large opening in the flower for nectar extraction. You may also want to plant catmint in your garden to attract the hummingbird. Shrubs, trees, and vines may also be used to get hummingbirds to your garden, although the planting and growing of these plants may take a longer time than annuals or perennials. But they are sucessful in getting hummingbirds into their midst! Ones to try would be a butterfly bush shrub, a black locust tree or a trumpet vine. You can also hang hummingbird feeders and put one part white sugar to four parts water in the feeder. The hummingbirds will be attracted to the brightly coloured feeder and be drawn by the sweet sugar water smell. Be sure to clean the feeder regularly so other insects do not succumb to the sweet fragrance allure and drown in the sugar water. Want to learn more about attracting hummingbirds and other birds to your garden? One of our expert staff at one of our conveniently located Ottawa garden stores would be happy to help.
