Hummingbird Magnets

Joanne K., Pitt County Extension Master Gardener Volunteer

Nothing is more entertaining than watching the aerial ballets of hummingbirds as they swoop to and fro sipping nectar from flower to flower. These acrobats can hover in mid air beating their wings 50 times a second. Their agility extends to flying backwards, upwards, and upside down.

A hummingbird sipping nectar from a Trumpet flower, Bignonia capreolata - Kelly Colgan Azar, Flickr CC BY-ND 2.0

Ruby-throated hummingbird at a Cardinal flower, Lobelia cardinalis-Bill Buchanan CC BY 4.0

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) is the only hummingbird species that breeds east of the Mississippi River. With their luminescent green feathers and the male's ruby-red gorget (throat patch), these colorful diving daredevils provide entertainment to eastern North Carolinians from early April to late September.

Hummers are important pollinators in the ecosystem helping plants to grow. To fuel their almost nonstop motion, a lot of nectar is required. Before leaving in the fall, they need to double their body mass by eating nectar and insects. According to the National Audubon Society, hummers must eat every 10 minutes or so, visiting between 1,000-2,000 flowers a day.

To attract hummingbirds to your garden plant a variety of vibrantly colored flowers, especially red ones, in large swaths. From April through September plan for continuous blooms to support the hummers from spring arrival to nesting to feeding for the long flight to overwinter in Mexico and Central America.

Tubular flowers, in particular, are favored by hummingbirds. Single flowers rather than double flowers are best. Double flowers have multiple petals or layers like roses or camellias that are very showy but offer little to no pollen or nectar for pollinators.

At times blooms are scarce so maintaining a hummingbird feeder in your garden helps to fill in the gap. According to the National Audubon Society, hummers are attracted to red flowers because their eyes are particularly sensitive to colors in the red to yellow spectrum. That's why hummingbird feeders are red and the feeder openings are yellow to look like flowers to draw in the hummingbirds.

Male ruby-throated hummingbird at a feeder?University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension Horticulture

For your feeders, use a 4-to-1 mix of hot water to white sugar. Cool before using. Never add honey or any other sweeteners or red dyes as they spoil easily. Keep refrigerated. 

Change out and clean the feeder at least once a week or more frequently when the weather is extremely hot. Use a 4-to-1 solution of water to vinegar to clean the feeder and rinse thoroughly several times before adding the sugar water.

Don't spray your plants with insecticides as hummingbirds eat the insects for their nutritional needs. Young hummingbirds are fed almost exclusively with insects. Also avoid herbicides as they linger in flowers where the hummers will ingest the poison when sipping the nectar. Also don't spray on or around the hummingbird feeder.

Ruby-throated hummingbird feeding on 'Black and Blue' Salvia, Salvia guaranitica - University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension Horticulture 

Scarlet Sage (Salvia coccinea), starts flowering in early summer continuing until the first frost. These blooms nourish the hummers during both the breeding season and when they're preparing to fly south in the fall. This native of southeastern U.S. and the American tropics has inch-long bright red flowers. While it tolerates drought, it blooms more profusely if watered. It's also resistant to deer, dry soil, and heat. 

Scarlet Sage, Salvia coccinea?Carl Lewis, CC BY 2.0

Red Buckeye, Aesculus pavia - Jim Robbins, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia), a native of the coastal and Piedmont areas of NC, is a small deciduous tree blooming in March and April. Its very large, showy, tubular red to orange-red flowers provide sustenance for the hummingbirds arriving in NC and for those migrating north. It's resistant to deer and wet soil. All parts of it are poisonous to humans, cats, dogs, and horses if eaten. ​

Bee Balm (Monarda) blooms in spring or summer in shades of red, burgundy, purple, lavender, and pink. Its small tubular flowers grow from the middle of the flower head attracting hummingbirds. This native perennial grows best in full sun and is an aggressive spreader. Deadheading the flowers can reduce self-seeding. It's resistant to deer and rabbit damage.

Beebalm, Monarda - Dy-e, CC BY-SA 3

For more information
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Plant-Lover's Tour - 'Hummingbird Plants' at the JC Raulston Arboretum YouTube channel on June 11, 2026?Mark Weathington, director of the JC Raulston Arboretum, hosts a great tour of hummingbird plants at the Raulston Arboretum. Go to

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/

for more information about the above plants.

https://www.audubon.org/content/how-create-hummingbird-friendly-yard

https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/hummingbirds-and-butterflies

https://www.plantdelights.com/blogs/articles/top-hummingbird-attracting-plants?srsltid=AfmBOormoKz6D6omvdHCSGLX9w5hMTWBDiRP7ZfmiZlv_FN3MqQ6uonk

https://transylvania.ces.ncsu.edu/news/get-ready-the-hummingbirds-are-coming/