Attracting Hummingbirds to Your Yard

When it comes time to planting I always plan an area in my yard for annual and perennial flowers that attract hummingbirds. Both my husband and I enjoy watching these birds that come to feed off our flowers. Know that the best way to attract hummingbirds to your yard is to provide them with their dietary needs and a reliable water source. Then the hummingbirds will visit your yard and gardens daily.

Photographs of hummingbirds in the flower garden

Hummingbirds are particular about their flowers as they need flowers that are rich in sugar content and will reject other plants. They will also look for gardens that have insects as they need to nourish their bodies with nutrients.

Decide on the nectar-rich plants that you want to grow Buy a variety of flowers that will bloom throughout the summer months.

Here are a few of my favorite flowers that attract hummingbirds.

Asters, Autumn Joy Sedum, Asiatic lilies,

Black-eyed Susan, Butterfly bush, Chamomile, 

Cardinal flower (red), Chives, Chrysanthemum, 

Clover (white, yellow, and red), Coreopsis, Cosmos, Crabapple, 

Dandelion Dill herb,  Echinacea Coneflowers, 
 Four O'clock flowers, Garden Mint, Happy returns day lily, 
Lavender, Lemon Balm, Lilacs,

 Marigold, Milkweed Mimosa, Parsley, Peony, Purple Phlox,

 Red and Fuchsia Bee Balm, Sage, Sweet Pea, 

Sweet Autumn Clematis, Thyme, , Verbena, Yarrow, and Zinnias.

You can buy an orange trumpet vine at ebay.com and attract hummingbirds to your yard. 

Helpful Tips

Keep hummingbirds in your yard and garden by installing a bird bath or water fountain. Change out the water daily to make sure that it is fresh. Do not use chlorinated water in the fountain, instead collect rainwater for your water fountain. You can also use filtered water.

Provide the hummingbirds with an organic environment by refraining from treating your yard and gardens with chemical-based insecticides as these chemicals will poison the hummingbirds and kill off their insect food source.

Garden Ideas for Small Yard

A friend of mine contacted me for assistance in creating a garden in her small yard. She lives in a townhouse and her backyard is very small and not private. If she put up a privacy fence then all she would need would be two panels on the sides and I thought she might feel closed in so I suggested that she invest in a lovely grass garden instead and create a private garden in her small yard.

The ornamental grass garden would add privacy and movement to her landscape plus the flower plumes are pretty. A grass garden is pretty summer through winter and is easy to care for too.

Along with the grass garden, I suggested planting some low growing daylilies and garden decorations; birdbath, outdoor bench, wind chimes and window box planted with colorful coleus plants.

Here is the digital set that I created for my friend. This set was used to show my friend how a few ornamental grasses can transform her yard and create a comfortable resting area where she could read a book or sip a cup of herbal tea.

When it comes to creating an ornamental grass garden I always choose tall grasses and then taper downward, ending with low growing border grass.

I recommend buying ornamental grasses at greenwoodnursery.com. This online nursery has a good selection of grass. My favorites are;

1. Karley Rose Grass; Features dark green foliage pretty rose color flower plume
2. white or pink pampas grass for showy flower plumes
3. Add contrast to the ornamental grass garden with Red Rooster Carex grass.
4. Accent the grass garden with low growing Elijah blue fescue grass with blue foliage or Lirope/ lilyturf with its dark green leaves and purple flowers in the fall. Both are low growing in a mound and will make the grass garden look eye appealing.

Design a Garden for Your Senses

Set the mood of your yard by designing a section that stimulates your senses and achieves inner peace from your sensory garden.  

Stimulate your sense of touch, sight, scent, hearing, and taste by designing a sensory garden that features flowers, ornamental grasses, bamboo, and tasteful as well as aromatic herbs.  

Add a soothing water feature and a cozy outdoor living space where you can sit and relax.  When you design a garden that stimulates your senses you will find harmony.  

Water feature garden

Before you begin your garden you will need to decide on the type of plants that you would like to grow.  You will want to choose a color scheme that is compatible and soothing, as well as flowers, shrubs, and herbs that are fragrant and will attract butterflies and hummingbirds. 

Choose ornamental grasses; fountain, reed, or zebra grasses will give the garden movement as well as lovely plumes and winter interest.  Fragrant flowering shrubs and vines:  ruby spice summersweet, sweet autumn clematis, and Four O’clocks will perfume the air in late summer and early fall.

  

Add a water feature to your sensory garden. The water feature need not be large however one that has water cascading down rocks into a shallow pool will provide you with a sense of sight and hearing.  The trickling water is a natural way to relax your mind and body.  

 

Designing Garden for Senses

Decide on the location of your sensory garden.  Allot space for flower, herb, and grass gardens, as well as a feature water garden, and sitting area.  Your garden should appeal to the eye by inviting you to different focal areas.  

A focal area could be your water feature, a pergola over a comfortable seating area, a colorful coneflower garden or a butterfly garden.  When you have decided upon the location of your garden you would then measure it.  

Measure the space of your garden and then draw out the locations of each garden.  Use colored pencils to indicate the color scheme of the plants.  Section off your sensory gardens; assign specific areas for plants.  You may want to plant bamboo or grasses with height in the back section of your garden as these plants will provide you with a living privacy hedge.  You may want to have a section for wildflowers, a water garden, herbs, or a butterfly garden.  

Garden Path

Pave stone path to the herb garden

Decide if you would want a natural stone garden path to connect all of the gardens to the outdoor living space.  Do a rough drawing to give you an idea of how you want your garden to look.

Excavate the garden area by clearing the area.  The best way to achieve this task is with a tiller, and a wheelbarrow to remove the sod.  Loosen the earth to the depth needed to install the pond and your container plants, shrubs, or trees.  For planting amend the soil with compost or manure, the plants that you grow will stimulate your sense of sight taste, and smell.

Install a water feature.  Set the fountain or pond close to the area where you will put your patio furniture. Add your seating or resting area to your garden.  Set outdoor furniture in the center of the garden also a bench close to the garden path.  This resting area will allow you to stimulate all of your senses.  Lie in a lounger or sit on the bench and read a book. Take a moment to close your eyes, listen to the sounds of the garden, and breathe in the aroma of the herbs and fragrant flowers.  Your daily stress will melt away and your body will be at peace.

Gardening Tips:

Accessorize your garden with wind chimes.  Hang the chimes in various locations in your garden.  When the wind blows the chimes will produce music. The wind music will stimulate your sense of hearing.

Add light to your garden by outlining the path with solar lights or accent feature areas with hanging solar lights.  The lights generate power from the sun and all soft lighting to your garden at night.

Here is a video that will give you an idea of how to design a garden for your senses.

Specialty Garden Ideas for Cat

Design a garden for your house cats or for neighborhood cats and this garden will provide the cats with a place to go for relaxation and entertainment.  The garden will become a safe space for your cats or neighborhood cats. 

 Once the specialty cat garden has grown the cats will be attracted to the grasses and catnip  The garden is a safe haven that provides cats with all that they need.

Photo of Lucy with cat house in the garden.  She loves her area with natural cypress mulch to keep her area bug free.

A stray cat that comes daily to the catnip garden

Here are photos of the cats that visit my garden.  It is a safe space for them.

If you love cats then you should create a special garden for them and they will come to visit you daily.

 Questions and Answers

Where should I design a specialty cat garden?

Choose a location for the cat garden that is away from people, pets, and car traffic.  Many people choose the furthest corner of their yard with two sides of privacy fencing.  If you do not have a privacy fence then you can install a trellis, plant shrubs, or ornamental grass.

What products are needed for cat garden?

Determine what products you will use for the cat garden.  You may want to install a water feature, a small pond, a sandbox and cat playhouse, and a feeding station.  Leave a section for cat grasses; wheat, barley, and oat also grow catnip and cat herbs in a sunny section of the garden.

How to design a specialty cat garden?

. 

Use white marking paint to outline the cat garden on the ground.  Measure your area.  These measurements will help you when purchasing gravel, mulch, and assorted seeds for the cat garden.

Draw out your cat garden on paper.  Use colored pencils to highlight where each item will be located.  The cat garden design will help you when you are setting up the garden. For a medium-sized residential home, a cat garden with the dimensions of 10 x 12 is a good size.

After you have drawn out your garden design and purchased your products you would then get the cat garden ready for planting and set up by clearing the site with a tiller. Remove all rocks and grass.  Loosen the soil so that it is a fine texture.  Mix a two-inch layer of compost with the garden soil.  Make sure that the cat garden has proper water drainage.

Set up the sandbox behind the cat house. Plant rosemary or peppermint herbs a foot away from the litter box to mask the odor.   These herbs are fragrant and bushy and tall, thus they will provide the cats with privacy.  Install the litter box by digging a hole that is the same size as the litter box. Level the bottom of the hole. Set the box in a hole and fill it with fine sand. Line the litter box rim with a stone border and surround the litter box with 3-inches of pea gravel.

Cascade and Pond Kit

Add the water feature in the center of the cat garden.  The water feature will add interest to the garden and all cats enjoy listening to the cascading water.  They also enjoy getting their paws wet. 

What herbs should I buy for the cat garden? 

Buy cat herbs.  These herbs are beneficial to cats; rosemary, catnip, cat thyme, Valerian, peppermint, and dandelion.  You may want to plant herbs in containers to add interest to the cat garden or plant them in various sections of the garden.  

Where should I plant the cat grass?

Plant the grasses in front of the herbs. Start grass seeds inside, and then transplant them when the grass is about two inches high. On the other hand, you can sow by seed directly in the garden. These grasses provide the cats with vitamins, minerals, and enzymes, which help your cat digest their food, and control hairballs.

Tips:

The cat house will serve as the cat's bed and breakfast as well as storage for food, water, bed, and toys. The cat house is a great addition to the garden.

Mulch or add pea gravel around the water feature and litter box. 

Water grasses and herbs in the morning.  Deadhead spent blooms to stimulate new growth on the plants.  Remove dead plants and grasses.

Accent specialty cat garden with cat statue or decorative stepping stones.  Hang a wind chime for the lovely music. (Hang chimes high so cats cannot reach them) 





.