Don't Plant Gardenias If You Want Hummingbirds To Visit (Try This Alternative Instead)

Who doesn't love watching hummingbirds zip around their yard? A surefire way to attract more hummingbirds to your garden is by planting bright, colorful flowers that will draw little hummers right in with the promise of sweet nectar. However, not just any flower will do, and gardenias, unfortunately, do not make the cut when it comes to the list of flowers that hummingbirds absolutely love. Instead, consider planting hydrangeas if you want hummingbirds as regular visitors.

While hydrangeas may not be the first flower that comes to mind when you think of hummingbirds, they are still popular amongst pollinators thanks to their vibrant colors and easily accessible nectar. If you plan on planting hydrangeas in your garden in hopes of welcoming hummingbirds, be sure to plant the correct kind. Hummingbirds are most attracted to hydrangeas with lacecap flowers, as those have more fertile florets with nectar than mophead hydrangeas. Mophead hydrangeas do still have some fertile florets hidden under their large sterile florets, but they're harder to access and, therefore, not as inviting to hummingbirds.

Even though hydrangeas and gardenias might look similar at first glance, the two flowers have some key differences that matter immensely to hummingbirds. First and foremost, gardenias are not native plants. This is significant because hummingbirds can have difficulty recognizing non-native flowers and, therefore, often aren't attracted to them. They also don't have enough nectar to attract hummingbirds. Additionally, the most common color for gardenias is white, which does little to draw hummingbirds in from afar compared to more colorful flowers.

While there are some white lacecap hydrangeas varieties out there, it's more common for the flowers to bloom in vibrant shades of pink, blue, purple, and red, which do more to attract hummingbirds. Lacecap hydrangeas are also great for luring beautiful hummingbirds into your yard because their flowers are well spread out and easily accessible and contain plenty of nectar for the little birds to enjoy. Hydrangeas are also native to North America, meaning hummingbirds are more likely to recognize them from above and zoom down to your garden to get down to business pollinating.