Key Takeaway This guide covers the types of water features hummingbirds like best, how to design them for safety, and how to adapt them to different climates across the country. Discover How Shallow, Moving Water Features Are Used to Attract Hummingbirds Hummingbirds live or migrate through almost every part of the United States, and while…
In the Northeast, a true hummingbird garden is more than a patch of flowers—it’s a layered habitat. Native shrubs and shrubby vines give Ruby‑throated Hummingbirds nectar, perches, nesting cover, insects for protein, and protection from wind and predators. When you combine these shrubs with your favorite nectar perennials and vines, your yard becomes a reliable…
Native azaleas, also called deciduous rhododendrons, are woodland shrubs that drop their leaves in winter but return each year with clouds of spring and early summer bloom, fragrance, and fall color. Their tubular to funnel-shaped flowers support bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, especially early in the season when few other shrubs are blooming. They also add…
Trumpet vine (Campsis radicans), also called trumpet creeper, is one of the strongest native hummingbird magnets you can grow—but it comes with a catch. It’s vigorous, heavy, and persistent, so it needs space, a sturdy support, and regular pruning to stay where you want it. If you’re planning a bigger habitat, trumpet vine is just…
Trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), also called coral honeysuckle, is one of the very best native vines you can grow for hummingbirds in the eastern United States. Its long, tubular red or coral flowers are packed with nectar, bloom over a long season, and are perfectly shaped for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. Unlike trumpet vine, this vine is…
Highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) is a native North American shrub best known for its delicious, antioxidant-rich berries and brilliant fall color. It’s the primary species behind most cultivated “garden blueberries” and typically grows 6–12 feet tall, forming an upright, multi-stemmed shrub. In spring, it produces clusters of small, white to pink-tinged, bell-shaped flowers; in summer,…
American elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) is a vigorous native shrub known for its showy white flower clusters and heavy crops of dark purple berries. It typically grows 5–12 feet tall and wide, forming multi-stemmed thickets that look right at home along fencerows, streambanks, woodland edges, and in naturalized corners of the garden. In late spring to…
New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus) is a small, deciduous native shrub valued for its glossy green foliage, frothy white summer flowers, and remarkable drought tolerance. Typically growing about 2–3 feet tall and wide, it forms a rounded mound that fits easily into small gardens, prairie edges, and dry, sunny slopes. In early to mid-summer, it’s…
Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) is one of those shrubs that quietly does everything right. This native wetland shrub produces unique, golf-ball-like flower clusters packed with tiny tubular blooms that draw in bees, butterflies, and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds from mid to late summer. Its seeds and dense structure feed and shelter ducks, shorebirds, and songbirds, making it a…
Fringeleaf wild petunia (Ruellia humilis) is a charming, low-growing native perennial that brings soft, lavender to purple blooms to hot, dry areas of the garden. Despite the common name, it isn’t a true petunia; instead, it’s a member of the Acanthus family and a rugged prairie and glade plant adapted to lean soils and summer…
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