Early Spring Favorites for Hummingbirds (that deer & rabbits ignore)

When selecting flowers to attract hummingbirds to your garden, it's easy to focus on summer blooms such as fuchsia and salvia, yet there are so many early spring perennials and shrubs that can entice them. What's more, this list of my personal favorites is also drought tolerant (once established), deer-resistant and even rabbit-resistant! Even if you don't have deer , rabbits or hummingbirds, I recommend these early season flowers if only to lift your spirits after a long winter and provide a few stems to cut for the vase.

Andromeda (Pieris japonica)

Mountain Fire andromeda in full bloom

I first saw andromeda (syn. Japanese Pieris, lily-of-the-valley shrub) growing in the acidic soil of Perth, Scotland and was astounded by the vibrant red new growth even more than the racemes of fragrant, tubular flowers. When we moved to the Pacific Northwest I was excited to realize they also thrived here and have included them in my garden ever since.

The new growth on Mountain Fire is especially vivid

These evergreen shrubs thrive in morning sun and afternoon shade and are hardy in zones 5-8.  There are many varieties to choose from: short or tall, green foliage or variegated, and flowers in shades of red, pink or white. Hummingbirds are attracted to all of them although seem to favor the larger shrubs overall.

My favorite varieties:

Smaller: Little Heath, Brookside Miniature

Taller: Mountain Fire, Flaming Silver, Valley Valentine

Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum)

King Edward VII flowering currant

These large flowering shrubs are best suited to the middle or back of the border since truthfully they can look pretty mediocre once flowering has finished. They also work well as a transitional shrub, bridging the more ornamental plantings to a native backdrop for example. In full boom, however, flowering currant is spectacular. The pendulous flowers resemble oversized raspberries and act as a siren to the neighborhood hummingbirds.

Several named varieties are available but all thrive in full sun in USDA zones 6-8. These layer easily which makes propagation a breeze if you'd like to increase your stock.

My favorite variety:

King Edward VII

Pasque flower (Pulsatilla spp.)

Common pasque flower

This unassuming herbaceous perennial deserves a space in every garden where it is hardy (USDA zones 4-8). The excitement begins very early in the year when the fern-like foliage of the pasque flower emerges. Even a small plant will bear dozens of bell-shaped flowers with a central yellow boss of stamens. As these fade they are replaced with exquisite seedheads featuring silky tendrils, rather like a clematis. I almost prefer these shimmering clouds of seed heads to the flowers!  This display lasts for months and hummingbirds go positively giddy for them so be sure to plant these where you can see them and enjoy the show.

Seed heads of pasque flower shimmer in the light

Nurseries typically carry the common pasque flower (P. vulgaris) and also the red pasque flower (P. rubra), although you may occasionally find other species. Flower colors are white, red, violet or blue.

My favorite varieties:

Common pasque flower

Red Bells

White pasque flower

Lungwort (Pulmonaria spp)

Mrs. Moon lungwort – an old variety but still a favorite of mine

The colorful foliage of lungwort is reason enough for growing these – but the hummingbirds  have a veritable party when the clusters of flowers appear on tall stems. Flowers are typically in shades of pink and/or blue, some varieties featuring blooms that change color as they age.

All are easy to grow in morning sun and dappled afternoon shade and do not need supplemental water in average, moisture-retentive soil. I find it wise to cut back the flowering stalks and the leaves after flowering has finished to avoid mildew developing. Fresh foliage quickly appears and in my garden at least remains healthy for the rest of the year. Hardy in USDA zones 3-9

Favorite varieties:

Spot On: deep blue flowers fade to raspberry pink. Spotted foliage

Mrs Moon: sky-blue flowers fade to light pink. Spotted foliage

Diana Clare: cobalt blue flowers and all-silver foliage

Trevi Fountain:similar to Mrs. Moon

Columbine (Aquilegia spp.)

Kirigami 'Deep Blue and White' columbine

A wonderful old-fashioned perennial that many gardeners have a love-hate relationship with, myself included! Columbine (syn. Granny's bonnet) self-seed with abandon….but they are so pretty that I can't help but include them in the garden anyway. The tiny flowers are perfect for adding to a pint sized posy and come in a wide range of colors. The foliage resembles maidenhair fern and quickly forms healthy mounds in the garden – a perfect companion to spring bulbs.

If your plants develop leafminer infection or mildew you may want to shear the plants to the ground after flowering. This will reduce self-seeding and keep the garden both tidy and disease free. I often do that and their space is quickly filled in by adjacent plants.

Columbine thrives in full sun or part sun and is typically hardy in zones 3-8 although that varies somewhat with the species.

My favorite varieties:

Blue and White – winky series

McKana hybrids mix

Bleeding heart (Lamprocapnos spp.)

Close up of spring blooming Gold Heart bleeding heart

Not long after moving to the Pacific Northwest, I discovered the local garden nursery Molbak's. On one of those early visits, with children in tow, Katie, aged 7 at the time requested that we bought some bleeding heart "just like we used to have in England". How could I possibly refuse?! Bleeding heart are often a gateway plant – a plant that introduced a child to the magical world of plants. I really can't imagine a garden without them.

These thrive in morning sun and afternoon shade or all day dappled shade and easily tolerate dry soils once established. They are hardy in zones 3-9 and can be found with foliage in shades of green and gold while the flowers may be red, pink or pure white

My favorite varieties:

Old fashioned

Gold Heart

Valentine

Mossy saxifrage (Saxifraga spp.)

Saxifraga 'Early Carnival' at the front edge of a container garden, combined with Helleborus Frostkiss 'Dorothy's Dawn' and Veronica 'Georgia Blue'

Perfect for a lightly shaded woodland garden and moisture retentive soil, these mossy cushions simply beg to be touched. In spring they are studded with tiny daisy-like flowers in shades of pink and white, held proudly on short, stout stems. I've also used these in my early spring containers where they can be used to soften the edge of a design and add some welcome color before being transplanted to the landscape for summer.

Mossy saxifrage are hardy in zones 3-7 or 8 and I have found that while they tolerate full sun in spring, by summer they need more shade – at least filtered shade. You'll often find them for sale in the groundcover section of the garden nursery but many are easy to grow from seed also.

My favorite varieties:

Peter Pan

Early Carnival

Snow carpet

Flower carpet

What's your favorite early spring flower that attracts hummingbirds – but not deer?