Watching hummingbirds zip through your garden is one of summer’s greatest joys in Illinois. These tiny, jewel-toned birds bring magic to any outdoor space with their incredible hovering abilities and lightning-fast wings.
By planting the right flowers, you can create a natural feeding station that will have hummingbirds visiting your yard all season long.
1. Cardinal Flower
Standing tall with vibrant red blooms, Cardinal Flower is practically irresistible to hummingbirds. The tubular shape perfectly matches a hummingbird’s long bill and tongue.
Native to Illinois wetlands, this perennial thrives in moist soil and partial shade, blooming from July through September when hummingbirds need nectar most. Plant them along stream banks or in rain gardens for a stunning display.
2. Trumpet Vine
Nicknamed ‘hummingbird vine’ for good reason! The trumpet-shaped orange-red flowers produce copious amounts of nectar that hummingbirds can’t resist. When a ruby-throated hummingbird visits, its bill fits perfectly into these natural nectar tubes.
Give this vigorous climber a sturdy support system – it can reach 30 feet tall. Plant it against fences or pergolas where you can watch the hummingbird action from your patio.
3. Bee Balm
With wild-looking, spiky blooms in shades of red, pink, and purple, bee balm creates a feast for hummingbirds. The flowers’ unusual shape resembles tiny fireworks, making them as appealing to human eyes as they are to hungry hummingbirds.
A member of the mint family, bee balm spreads readily in sunny spots. The aromatic foliage gives off a pleasant scent when brushed against, adding another sensory dimension to your hummingbird garden.
4. Coral Bells
Delicate coral-pink flowers dangling from slender stems catch the eye of passing hummingbirds. Despite their dainty appearance, these hardy perennials deliver plenty of nectar to fuel a hummingbird’s high-energy lifestyle.
Beyond their blooms, coral bells offer attractive foliage in shades from purple to caramel. Plant them in partial shade borders where their year-round leaf color provides garden interest even after flowering season ends.
5. Columbine
Sporting unique spurred flowers that resemble tiny ballerinas, columbine offers nectar that’s perfectly accessible to hummingbirds. Their nodding blooms in red, pink, purple, and yellow add charming color to spring gardens across Illinois.
Early-blooming columbine provides crucial nectar when hummingbirds first return from migration. Plant these woodland-edge natives in dappled shade where they’ll self-seed gently, creating naturalized colonies that return year after year.
6. Foxglove
Dramatic spires of tubular blooms make foxglove an architectural standout that doubles as hummingbird heaven. The spotted throats of these bell-shaped flowers guide hummingbirds straight to the nectar source.
Foxglove performs best in partially shaded locations with rich, well-drained soil. Though technically biennial, foxglove often self-seeds so abundantly that it behaves like a perennial, returning to Illinois gardens year after year with minimal effort.
7. Scarlet Sage
Flaming red spikes of scarlet sage act like beacons to passing hummingbirds. The intense color is precisely what these birds are programmed to seek out, making this annual a must-have for serious hummingbird gardeners.
Heat-loving and drought-tolerant once established, scarlet sage keeps blooming from early summer until frost. For maximum impact, mass several plants together in sunny spots where their vibrant color creates dramatic contrast against green foliage.
8. Penstemon
Ruby-throated hummingbirds zoom straight to penstemon’s tubular blooms, which hang like colorful bells on sturdy stems. Native varieties in particular offer the perfect nectar recipe these birds crave.
Sometimes called beardtongue for the fuzzy stamen that protrudes from each flower, penstemon thrives in the challenging clay soils common throughout Illinois. Once established, these drought-resistant perennials need little care while providing weeks of hummingbird-attracting blooms.
9. Butterfly Bush
Long, cone-shaped flower clusters in purple, pink, or white make butterfly bush a nectar buffet for hummingbirds. Despite its name, this shrub attracts far more than just butterflies to Illinois gardens.
Reaching heights of 5-10 feet, butterfly bush creates a dramatic backdrop for smaller perennials. The sweet honey scent that draws hummingbirds will also perfume your garden on warm summer evenings, adding sensory appeal for human visitors too.
10. Hollyhock
Towering stalks of hollyhock create vertical drama while offering hummingbirds a nectar feast at multiple levels. The open-faced flowers in shades from white to nearly black provide landing platforms where hummingbirds can briefly rest while feeding.
An old-fashioned cottage garden favorite, hollyhocks bring nostalgic charm to Illinois landscapes. Plant these biennials along fences or buildings where their impressive height (up to 8 feet) can be properly supported and appreciated.
11. Fuchsia
Dangling like exotic earrings, fuchsia blooms create irresistible feeding stations for hummingbirds. The birds hover beneath these pendant flowers, perfectly positioned to sip nectar from their tubular base.
While not winter-hardy in Illinois, fuchsias make spectacular hanging basket or container plants for summer patios. Place them where you can watch the hummingbird action up close – perhaps near a kitchen window or outdoor seating area.
12. Red Hot Poker
Resembling fiery torches, red hot poker plants demand attention from both gardeners and hummingbirds. The tubular florets packed densely on each spike transition from fiery red to yellow, creating a sunset effect in the garden.
Drought-tolerant and deer-resistant, these dramatic perennials thrive in the sometimes challenging Illinois climate. Their exotic appearance belies their tough nature, making them perfect for low-maintenance gardens where maximum hummingbird appeal is the goal.
13. Catmint
Clouds of lavender-blue flowers hover over silvery foliage, creating a cool-toned haven where hummingbirds love to feed. While less showy than some hummingbird favorites, catmint’s prolific blooming habit makes it a reliable nectar source.
Nearly indestructible in Illinois gardens, catmint bounces back from harsh winters and summer droughts with equal resilience. Trim plants back after the first flush of flowers fades to encourage a second round of blooms that will keep hummingbirds visiting through fall.
14. Jewel Weed
Often overlooked as a wildflower, jewel weed’s spotted orange blooms are hummingbird magnets in Illinois’ natural areas. The tubular shape is perfectly matched to a hummingbird’s bill, making nectar collection efficient.
Growing naturally in moist woodland edges, jewel weed makes an excellent addition to wild gardens and naturalized areas. As a bonus, the sap from crushed stems soothes poison ivy rash, making this native plant as useful to humans as it is to hummingbirds.