As early as mid-April, migrating hummingbirds begin arriving in Colorado. Their presence is announced with the humming and whirring sounds made by their wings as they dart from flower to flower. At Denver Botanic Gardens these entertaining birds are commonly seen feeding on nectar and insects, aggressively protecting their territory, diving from the sky or checking out an unsuspecting visitor.</p> Indeed, Denver Botanic Gardens, with its diversity of plant species whose blooms span the seasons, provides an excellent stopover for migrating hummingbirds. As you take this tour, you will most likely be rewarded with the sights and sounds of these charismatic birds.</p> Now is the time to welcome hummingbirds with open flowers!</strong></p> Begin this tour at the Darlene Radichel Plant Select® Garden</strong> to see one of our earliest blooming shrubs: Arctostaphylos</em> × coloradensis</em> 'Panchito'. Facing Monet Pool</strong>, turn left onto the gravel pathway and look for a sprawling shrub on your right with thick, leathery, evergreen leaves. In the springtime, this plant has pinkish-white urn-shaped flowers that attract hummers. A Plant Select® native selection from the Uncompahgre Plateau, this cultivar will thrive in a well-drained area of your yard, where it will become a lovely evergreen groundcover and an early nectar source for hummers. </li> Next, head to the Gates Montane Garden</strong> to see another early bloomer, which is native to the Front Range. As you stroll through the shady forest, you may notice columbine (Aquilegia</em> spp.) and fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium</em>) in bloom, which are great mid-season nectar species for hummers. On your right, before you exit the Gates Montane Garden and where several paths converge with the main path, you will see wax currant (Ribes cereum</em>), a medium-sized shrub with maple-like leaves. In the springtime, it produces tubular, pale-pink flowers, which attract hummingbirds. If you are looking for a shrub with showier and more fragrant flowers, another wild currant that thrives in Front Range landscapes is golden currant (R. aureum</em>).</li> </ul> There are a host of showy mid-season-blooming species that attract hummingbirds</strong> including columbine (Aquilegia</em> spp.), scarlet gilia (Ipomopsis aggregata</em>), harebells (Campanula rotundifolia</em>), larkspur (Delphinium</em> spp.) coral bells (Heuchera</em> spp.), bergamot (Monarda </em>spp.), orange milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa</em>), Penstemon</em> spp. and Colorado Four O’clock (Mirabilis multiflora</em>). This tour features the latter two.</p> Exit the Gates Montane Garden and continue on the main path through the Rock Alpine Garden</strong>. Turn left on the path that divides the Upper Meadow from the South Ledge. About two-thirds of the way down, look for Colorado Four O'clock (Mirabilis multiflora</em>), which should still be in full bloom. This showy, drought-tolerant species has dark green leaves and lovely magenta flowers that attract hummingbirds. It is the perfect addition to Front Range landscapes – just allow enough space for it to grow!</li> Next, continue to Sacred Earth</strong>. You will be greeted with sprays of red, trumpet-shaped flowers amongst wispy grasses. These flowers belong to Bridges’ penstemon (Penstemon rostriflorus</em>), which is a later-blooming species of Penstemon</em>. Extend your red-blooming penstemon season with the early-blooming Eaton’s penstemon (P. eatonii</em>), followed by the mid-season scarlet bugler (P. barbatus</em>), followed by Bridges’ penstemon. While you are at it, why not add the early, pink-blooming desert beardtongue (P. pseudospectabilis</em>), a showy landscaping plant that is popular with hummingbirds in my yard.</li> </ul> Late Season Flowers for Hummingbirds: Send Hummingbirds off With a Nectar Party</strong></p> By early September, hummingbirds are heading south towards their wintering grounds. Fortunately, there are many late-blooming species that provide nectar for hummingbirds, including species of Salvia</em>, Agastache</em> and Epilobium</em>. The Roads Water-Smart Garden</strong> showcases examples of all three genera.</p> Once you reach the Water-Smart Garden, look for hummingbird trumpet (Epilobium canum</em> ssp. garrettii </em>‘PWWG01S’ ORANGE CARPET®) on your right. With its myriad showy orange-red flowers, you can’t miss it. Planted in your yard, it will quickly spread to form a ground cover that blooms from mid to late summer. And, as the common name suggests, this western nativar (native cultivar) is irresistible to hummingbirds.</li> As you continue through the Water-Smart Garden, notice the various species and cultivars of Salvia</em>. A favorite is Salvia greggii</em> ‘Furman’s Red’, which will be on your left. This species has crimson flowers that will bloom in the spring and then again through the fall. As you approach it, you will also see Agastache</em> on your left that is beginning to bloom.</li> End your tour with a walk along Water-Smart Garden’s gravel path, searching for various cultivars of both Salvia</em> and Agastache</em>. Notice how they are grouped with other drought-tolerant species including trees, shrubs, succulents and grasses to provide a textural and colorful landscape that is also beneficial for hummingbirds.</li> </ul> Once you have incorporated these plants into your garden, hummingbirds will come, although it may take time for hummingbirds to notice. When you hear the metallic whirring of a male broad-tailed hummingbird and watch it dart from flower to flower, you know your efforts have paid off!</p> In closing, it should also be mentioned that providing natural nectar sources in your yard is one important thing you can do for hummingbirds. However, hummingbirds also need water, shelter and space. To learn more, visit National Audubon Society’s website</a>.</p>
Now that it’s July and seedlings have had time to root in, container displays around the Gardens are taking off — bulking up in size, spilling over edges and launching flower stalks. Come with me as we wander among some of this season’s most colorful and dynamic displays. </p> First stop, the large containers outside the Bonfils-Stanton Visitor Center</strong>. Each pot is filled with citrus-colored flowers that echo the theme of neighboring beds – “So glad to see you,” a joyful hello to all who pass by. Although I chose the theme over a year ago, it has proven unexpectedly apt, reflecting the gratitude we feel welcoming visitors back. The highlight of this design is the tropical legume Senna didymobotrya</em> planted on either side of two cannas. Each plant has long stems that arch inward and, at distance, remind me of a person’s arms raised up in excitement before hugging a friend. Yellow, round flowers and leaves that smell like toasted corn give this beauty its common name, popcorn cassia. </li> Next stop, outside Marnie’s Pavilion</strong> where colleague Nick Daniels has transformed the low walls into a wondrous collection of cacti and succulents. This display encapsulates the principle that contrast is completion. It is diverse, unifying and satisfies our love of visual drama. Note how the variegated Agave attenuata</em> ‘AGAVWS’ Ray of Light pops in front of the brilliant red Aloe dorotheae.</em></li> From here we walk south to the Science Pyramid,</strong> where colleague Mike Holloway shows his talent for plant mixology -- combining cool and hot colors, spiny geometric forms and soft cascading ones. You’ll see more of his talents in the Victorian Secret Garden to the northwest, where kitsch is elevated to high art. Humorous touches — including a head planted with a bromeliad wig — are mixed with elegant combinations of foliage plants.</li> But first pass through the Steppe Garden</strong> to see an eclectic mixture of high-altitude gems displayed in front of the waterway. Colleague Sonya Anderson has assembled plants from four steppe regions, including a large pelargonium that looks like a tree and a king protea.</li> More must-see containers await in the Annuals Garden and Pavilion</strong>, where colleague Bridget Blomquist has lined beams of the pergola with baskets of silver dichondra, magenta geraniums and an Alternanthera </em>the color of red wine. The plants match those in planters below with equal lushness, making you feel as if you’ve escaped into a flower tunnel.</li> Next stop, South African Plaza</strong> where colleague Mike Kintgen transports us to the tip of Africa and nearby Madagascar and Sub-Saharan Africa. Here you’ll find flora that’s both familiar and unusual. Pelargoniums join lesser known specimens, such as Senecio </em>and Kalanchoe</em>, in pots on the terrace and in an adjacent bed of flowering torches, known as Kniphofia</em>.</li> Finally, walk through Le Potager,</strong> past a sea of larkspur to the gazebo and you'll find a container of Abutilon </em>‘Souvenir de Bonn’. Encircling it are wands of Campanula glomerata</em>, mingling so naturally with the flowering maple that you’d think they grew in the pot too. In fact, the campanula grows in the bed and the potted Abutilon </em>was placed there by colleague Ebi Kondo to create a seamless effect.</li> </ul>
