When the early hummingbirds start to arrive, there isn’t much in bloom, so adding early-spring-blooming flowering plants to your garden and hanging up hummingbird feeders can help attract the birds. Here are five flowering shrubs, vines, and plants that hummingbirds feed on in early spring.
Red Buckeye
In my opinion, one of the best early spring bloomers for hummingbirds is red buckeye (Aesculus pavia). When walking on our local riverwalk path in early spring, there are always lots of hummingbirds flying from buckeye flower to buckeye flower as early as March. These flowers also attract the red-spotted purple butterflies as they emerge in early spring.
Coral Honeysuckle
This beautiful red-flowered honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens) is native to the U.S. and is not as aggressive as the Japanese honeysuckle that is nonnative. It begins to bloom in March and may continue through June.
Crossvine
Another native vine, the crossvine (Bignonia capreolata) produces large tubular orange/yellow flowers that will attract hummingbirds. It blooms in March through May. I’ve had one growing on an arbor that got covered in blooms – so pretty!
Native Azaleas
There are about 17 species of azaleas that are native to North America and they come in all sorts of colors. Some will bloom as early as late March, while others don’t start until early summer. Some have a sweet fragrance and some have little to no fragrance. Check out the list of azaleas on the Azalea Society of America website.
Columbine
Columbines produce drooping colorful flowers from tall stems. The native columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) produces red and yellow flowers from February through July. They may be tiny flowers, but the hummingbirds like them!
Other Plants that Attract Hummingbirds
Read about other plants that attract hummingbirds to your garden.
