Attract Hummingbirds with Red Flowers in Your Garden

Hummingbirds will visit flowers of any color, but red seems especially attractive to them. This is less a true preference than a behavior related to efficiency. Bees do not see red well; flowers of blue, purple and white show up better to them. Since bees might overlook red flowers, hummingbirds are likely to find more nectar within them. The shape of the flower is also important, with tubular blossoms catering to hummers’ long bill and tongue. These characteristics give them an advantage over other pollinators when accessing nectar deep within a flower.

Hummingbirds do not subsist on nectar alone. They consume lots of arthropods, such as spiders. They also steal insects trapped in spiderwebs, and use bits of webs in their nests. So besides planting their preferred flowers, support hummingbirds by skipping pesticides.

Here are five red-flowered plants to consider for your hummingbird garden:

1. 'Hot Lips' salvia

‘Hot Lips’ salvia (Salvia microphylla ‘Hot Lips’) is a quick-growing, heat-loving perennial that reaches about three feet tall and wide, with a dense, shrubby form. The flowers appear from spring to fall. While they’re usually bicolor, some solid white or red blossoms can appear, too.

Origins: Salvia microphylla is native to southeastern Arizona. The cultivar ‘Hot Lips’ originated in Mexico. It was brought to the US in 1999 by Richard Turner, then editor of Pacific Horticulture, and first propagated for sale at Strybing Arboretum (now known as San Francisco Botanical Garden).

Growing it: Place in full sun and average to lean soil. Provide regular water until the plant is established, after which it can sustain short periods of drought. Where it’s winter hardy, cut the stems back hard in spring to promote bushy new growth and heavy flowering. In colder zones, it can be grown in a container and wintered in a cool, frost-free space with infrequent watering. Cut back old stems, root prune and repot after the last frost. USDA Zones 7–10.

2. California fuchsia

California fuchsia (Epilobium cana), or hummingbird trumpet, is a West Coast native perennial. It blooms heavily from midsummer into fall, with crimson flowers that pop against its gray-green foliage. The plant grows as a spreading mound up to three feet tall and slightly wider.

Origins: Rocky slopes of the Southwest, Interior West and California. Formerly known as Zauschneria cana.

Growing it: Provide California fuchsia with full to part sun and regular water while it is settling into the garden. Thereafter, it can withstand drought. Cut the stems down to the ground after flowering ends, and shear new growth once in spring to promote bushiness and keep its height down. The species can spread by both rhizomes and self-seeding; cultivars are reportedly less apt to spread. Zones 8–10.

3. Coral honeysuckle

Coral honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) is a non-aggressive vine growing 15 to 20 feet long. It can be allowed to ramble as a groundcover but providing it a support to climb (by twining) will make it easier to watch the hummingbirds apt to flock to its long, slender red flowers, which occur in spring and rebloom sporadically over the summer. It is evergreen in the South.

Origins: The species is native to woodlands of the Southeast US.

Growing it: Site in full sun for the heaviest flowering, although it will also take part shade. Likewise rich, moist, well-drained soil will spur the best performance, but it tolerates clay soil and brief periods of inundation. Powdery mildew can develop if the location lacks good air flow. If pruning becomes necessary, do so just after the first flush of flowers. Several cultivars, some with yellow flowers, have been introduced. Zones 4–7.

4. Scarlet beebalm

Scarlet beebalm (Monarda didyma) is a perennial with clusters of bright red, outward-facing flowers topping its erect stems in spring and early summer in the South or from midsummer to fall in the North. It grows three to four feet tall and spreads by rhizomes. The market has seen a flood of monarda cultivars in recent years, but these are mostly hybrids. Hummingbirds will visit them, but in at least one side-by-side trial, they showed a preference for the larger flowers and taller stems of straight species scarlet beebalm and its cultivar ‘Jacob Cline’.

Origins: Open woods and stream banks of the United States Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.

Growing it: Scarlet beebalm is susceptible to powdery mildew. The resistant cultivar ‘Jacob Cline’ should be used in gardens, especially where humidity runs high. Since stress can contribute to disease, keep the plant watered through dry spells. Plant it in full sun to part shade and soil that remains moist. Divide clumps every few years, discarding the dead zone at the center. Zones 4–9.

5. Cardinal flower

The peculiar shape of this fast-growing, short-lived perennial’s bright red flower is difficult for insects to navigate—to the benefit of hummingbirds, which easily access the nectar. From midsummer to autumn, the flowers line upright spikes and open from the bottom to the top. Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) grows upright and narrow, reaching between three and five feet tall and about a foot wide.

Origins: Stream banks, swamps, ditches and other wet sites throughout most of eastern North America and into the Southwest.

Growing it: Place it in full sun to light shade and wet to moderately moist soil. Although individual plants survive only two or three years, the population can persist through self-seeding. Zones 3–9.

Image credits: 'Hot Lips' salvia by Mark Gunn/CC BY 2.0; California fuchsia by Katie Hetrick/UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden/CC BY 2.0; Coral honeysuckle by Melissa McMasters/CC BY 2.0; Scarlet bee balm by Lydia Fravel/CC BY 2.0; Cardinal flower by Rodger Evans/CC BY-ND 2.0