Hello, this is Yolanda Vanveen from vanveenbulbs.com. and in this segment we're going to learn about flowers for a hummingbird garden. How to grow a hummingbird garden and what kind of flowers should we select for a hummingbird garden? The first thing to consider when we're planting bulbs for a hummingbird garden, or planting any kind of flowers, is what is going to attract a hummingbird. What types of flowers attract hummingbirds? I'd used to think it was only red flowers, but as I've watched them over the years, I'd learned it's not really the color of the flowers, it's the shape. They love anything that is a trumpet shape. So any flower where they can stick their beak into the flower, to grab the pollen, and come back out, they've seemed to love it. So whether it's yellow or red or purple, it doesn't matter, they love all the colors; it's the shape. So pretty much anything that's trumpet-shaped, they've love. So this a Crocosmia George Davidson and they've seemed to love all my Crocosmias, whether the Oranges or the red Lucifer, they love all of them. They also love unusual plants. This is a Galtonia from South Africa and it's a, in the hyacinth family; they say it's kind of an elongated hyacinth but it has little bell flowers and I've noticed my hummingbirds love it too. It's almost like a fuschia; hummingbirds love fuschias too. They just come right into there and they'll get the pollen out. So this is a great plant for hummingbirds and there's a lot of other vines and plants that you don't even think about that hummingbirds would like but they love. This is my Mandevilla, or Mandevia or Mandeville, there's so many different ways that people pronounce this, but the hummingbirds just love it and again it's trumpet-shaped and it's red, they especially seem to like the reds the best of all the colors. But, again, they go in and get the pollen out and it works really well and it's a beautiful vine plant that can be grown pretty much anywhere and I just protect it in the winter and it will come back every year even in cold climates. And this is also a beautiful plant; it's called a Peacock Orchid or Acidanthrea or now officially it's Gladiolus Murielae, so it's a beautiful plant that's very fragrant, smells sort of like Kool-aid, I just love it and it's white with burgundy stripes but my hummingbirds love it too. It's got a really nice funnel; they've seemed to like anything that's a long funnel; it's one of their favorite plants. Agapanthus or Lily of the Nile, they come in whites and purples and blues; the hummingbirds love this plant too; they love to get their little beak into the middle of them. So again, it's a trumpet shape and they'll just hang out in my Agapanthus or Lily of the Nile for hours, they love it. And when considering what kind of flowers to grow for your hummingbirds, consider also what kind of trees to grow for them Because you can have flowers alone but if there's no trees or bushes for them to make their nest, there's no where for them to live. So plants like eucalyptus or maples or vines or trees or shrubs of pretty much any kind, are great for hummingbirds. So never forget to give them a home too. So having a hummingbird garden is really easy. You can collect a lot of your favorite plants and there's so many more you can decide from; put them in your garden and you'll find that the hummingbirds will come to your garden every year, more and more and you can enjoy their company for years to come.
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