Gardening Flowers These 15 Gorgeous Flowers Will Attract Hummingbirds to Your Garden By Andrea Beck Andrea Beck Andrea Beck served as garden editor at BHG and her work has appeared on Food & Wine, Martha Stewart, MyRecipes, and more. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on June 14, 2021 Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: Bob Stefko Feeding hummingbirds is such a rewarding activity. Sure, a feeder or two will do the trick, but you can also attract hummers by growing flowers with a tapered funnel shape that are rich in nectar and color (especially red). Plant as many of these hummingbird favorites as you can, and you'll not only provide a floral buffet for these tiny birds, you'll also fill your yard with beautiful blooms. 01 of 15 Bee Balm Denny Schrock This summer-blooming perennial is sure to make a bold statement in your landscape. Although red is the most common color for bee balm, you can also find varieties with pink, violet, and white flowers; all are good for attracting hummingbirds and other pollinators. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-9 Buy It: Bee Balm Mix ($20, The Home Depot) 02 of 15 Garden Phlox Bob Stefko Hummingbirds will appreciate garden phlox as much as you do. This old-fashioned perennial produces clusters of sweetly fragrant pink, red, lavender, or white flowers in summer. The flowers that attract hummingbirds grow upright in clumps and look especially pretty in a mixed border. Light: Full sun or part shade Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide Zones: 4-8 03 of 15 Lupine Andy Lyons A cottage garden classic, lupines offer colorful spires of blooms in early and mid-summer and can be enjoyed even when they're not flowering thanks to their pretty hand-shape foliage. Lupines are sensitive to heat, so look for hybrids specifically bred to withstand hot summer temperatures. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 4 feet tall and wide Zones: 4-9 Buy It: Lupines Mixture ($30, Breck's) 04 of 15 Red-Hot Poker Laurie Dickson This hummingbird favorite features tall spikes of scarlet, yellow, white, and orange tubular flowers and fountain-like clumps of coarse, grassy, gray-green foliage. Red-hot poker is impressive in small groupings at the back of a perennial border, or even just as a single specimen plant. Clip spent flowers to promote rebloom. Light: Full sun or part shade Water: Plant in well-drained soil Size: To 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide, depending on type Zones: 5-9, depending on type Buy It: Red Hot Poker Plant ($18, Breck's) 05 of 15 Hollyhock Rick Taylor This classic biennial (lives for 2 years, usually flowering in the second) that attracts hummingbirds is renowned for its tall spikes of single or double flowers. Hollyhocks also bloom in a wide range of colors, from purple-black to red, yellow, pink, or white. The flowering stalks of this cottage garden plant are covered in buds all the way up their stems, which gradually bloom from the bottom of the stem up. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in well-drained soil Size: To 8 feet tall and 3 feet wide Zones: 3-8, but often grown as annuals 06 of 15 Columbine Blaine Moats Start the hummingbird season out right with the cheery red-and-yellow blooms of wild columbine. This easy-growing perennial is native to many rocky terrains and woodland areas of North America and prefers afternoon shade when grown in areas with hot and humid summers. Wild columbine's unique flowers hang downward from a long stalk and have round tips on the ends of the petals. Light: Full sun to part shade Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 3-8 07 of 15 Coralbells Peter Krumhardt Almost perfect perennial-border plants, coralbells offer mounds of attractive foliage and clusters of red, pink, white, or green flowers dangling off long narrow stems that rise high above the leaves. Coralbells are easy to grow as long as they don't stay too wet and will keep blooming if they're deadheaded often. Light: Part to full shade Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide Zones: 4-9 Buy It: Dolce Spearmint Coralbells ($26, The Home Depot) 08 of 15 Cardinal Flower Denny Schrock It's tough to find a brighter red color for the garden than cardinal flower. This late-summer blooming perennial is native to North America and produces spikes of vibrant scarlet tubular flowers that hummingbirds find irresistible. Cardinal flower even enjoys wet soil conditions, making them a good choice for bog gardens. Light: Full sun or part shade Water: Plant in consistently moist soil Size: To 3 feet tall and 1 foot wide Zones: 2-8 09 of 15 Foxglove Peter Krumhardt Another staple of cottage gardens, biennial foxgloves bear tall spikes of pink, purple, white, yellow, or patterned tube-shaped flowers in summer. Although some foxgloves are perennials, most common varieties are biennials, meaning that in their first year grown from seed they will only grow stalks and the next year, they'll bloom and drop seeds to start the cycle over again. Light: Full sun or part shade Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 6 feet tall and 3 feet wide, depending on type Zones: 3-8, depending on type 10 of 15 Lantana Hetherington & Associates A favorite of butterflies and hummingbirds alike, lantana offers colorful red, yellow, orange, pink, lavender, or white flowers. These heat-loving, drought-resistant plants will fit well in sunny spots in your garden. Lantana's bright flowers make an excellent contrast with its dark leaves and the color will gradually get darker as time goes on. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in well-drained soil Size: To 4 feet tall and wide (but usually less when grown as an annual) Zones: 8-11, but typically grown as an annual in colder areas Buy It: Lantana Dallas Red ($22, The Home Depot) 11 of 15 Penstemon Peter Krumhardt Also known as beardtongue for the fuzzy-looking stamen in the throat of each flower, penstemons are tough native plants that thrive in heat, drought, and poor, rocky soil. Its tubular blooms can be red, pink, purple, orange, yellow, or white. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in well-drained soil Size: To 5 feet tall and 2 feet wide, depending on variety Zones: 3-9 Buy It: Pineleaf Penstemon ($9, High Country Gardens) 12 of 15 Scarlet Salvia Peter Krumhardt Light a fire in any bed with these bright red annuals. You also can find varieties of annual salvia in cream, purple, and salmon. Each variety of this flower for hummingbirds is easy to grow and drought-tolerant. For extra pollinator appeal, add a DIY hummingbird feeder to your garden. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in well-drained soil Size: To 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide Zones: Annual Buy It: Salvia Salsa Scarlett Seeds ($8, Etsy) 13 of 15 Butterfly Bush (Shrub) Richard Hirneisen Don't let its common name fool you; hummingbirds love butterfly bush's fragrant flowers as much as butterflies do. This long-blooming shrub offers blooms in shades of white, purple, blue, and pink. Butterfly bush is often known for its arching, fountain-like habit; trim the plant back to the ground every year to keep encouraging this pattern. Note that butterfly bush is invasive in some areas, so check local restrictions before planting it. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: To 10 feet tall and 12 feet wide Zones: 5-10 Buy It: 'Pugster Amethyst' Butterfly Bush ($47, The Home Depot) 14 of 15 Trumpet Vine Jon Jensen This perennial vine is so good at attracting hummingbirds with its summerlong clusters of red, orange, or yellow flowers that you'll sometimes see it sold as hummingbird vine. Trumpet vine's fast-growing habit allows it to quickly cling to vertical objects; be cautious about potential invasion by removing seed pods on the plant before they fully ripen and drop seed. Light: Full sun or part shade Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: Climbs to 30 feet or more Zones: 5-8 15 of 15 Honeysuckle Denny Schrock A vigorous woody vine, trumpet honeysuckle blooms through the summer and autumn with clusters of scarlet-red tubular flowers. The clusters of blooms show beautifully against the vine's dark green foliage. Light: Full sun Water: Plant in moist, well-drained soil Size: Climbs to 15 feet Zones: 4-9 Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit