Hummingbirds 101

Living in New York City, I rarely came across a hummingbird.  I had never given them much thought, so when one showed up in my yard during my first North Carolina summer, for one horrifying moment I mistook it for an enormous flying insect.  Once I realized it was a hummingbird, though, I was thrilled - this North Carolina thing might work out after all.  My garden was non-existent back then, but I was already envisioning creating a haven for birds, bees, and butterflies.  So I set about trying to create the perfect hummingbird habitat. 

Only after I became an experienced gardener and a naturalized southerner did I realize that those ubiquitous "Plants that Attract Hummingbirds" lists should be heavily annotated.  Take ajuga.  I don't know about you, but I have never had a hummingbird in my Cary garden in March, when ajuga blooms.  The earliest I have seen one is April, and then it was merely the briefest of sightings.  On the other end of the seasonal spectrum, we have pineapple sage, which I put in pots on my deck to maximize my hummingbird viewing pleasure.  Pineapple sage is sometimes billed as a September bloomer, but in my yard it starts blooming in mid-October.  The bees are  delighted, but the hummingbirds have already left town.   

I loaded up my garden with plants that are reportedly hummingbird favorites: Louisiana Iris, bee balm, hibiscus, agastache, torch lilies, turtlehead, and tons of different kinds of sage.  Nevertheless, the only months in which I regularly spot hummers are May, July, and August. In mid-May, when the Louisiana Iris blooms, I see primarily males (distinguishable by their red throat).  However, in late May and June, I see nary a one, despite my ostentatiously blooming bee balm and Rose of Sharon.  From mid-July through August, we're back in business, with regular sightings of the all-green female hummingbirds.  Interestingly, the males now are nowhere to be found.  

With Rose of Sharon, bee balm, bog sage, and crinum, my June garden should be filled with hummingbirds. But the hummingbirds seem to vanish in June, only to reappear in July.

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