Friday, February 24, 2012

With our native vegetation coming alive and flowers blooming, this coming spring marks the return of our beautiful hummingbirds. Perhaps you've seen them pausing briefly at our feeders next to The Terrace Grill, or zipping from plant to plant as you walked around the rest of the ranch. You may not know it, but these amazing little guys are world travelers. The birds you'll begin to see over the coming weeks have just flown all the way from Mexico and Central America where they spent the winter in warmer climes, and have travelled back to their native territories here in Texas.

If you'd like to assist these amazing little creatures in their arduous journey, here are some things you can plant to attract them. Because of the loss of wildflowers and habitat, the hummingbirds depend more and more on the kindness of interested folks who are willing to lend them a helping hand.

Here at Riven Rock Ranch we have established a number of flowering plants that are not only beautiful but favorites of hummingbirds. The list is long; just keep in mind that native is always best. Trumpet Creeper, Salvia Greggi, Indigo Spire, Mexican Sage, Yaupon Holly, Vitex (also known as Butterfly Bush), Hackberry, Viburnum, Impatiens, Blue Sage, Mexican Heather, Flackfoot Daisy, Copper Canyon Daisy, Turk's Cap, Society Garlic, Esperanza, Honeysuckle, Confederate Jasmine, Lady Banks Roses, Plumbago, Agave, Catnip, Rosemary, Lemon Grass, Culinary Sages, Pineapple Guava, Red Yucca, Curly Leaf Indian Spike, Agarita, Butterfly Weed and Mexican Marigold.

If you don't have time to keep up with the landscaping, a quicker fix is a hummingbird feeder. An easy formula is 4 parts water to 1 part sugar and never use anything but plain table sugar. Enjoy these little guys! Along with owning their very own John Mayer song, these guys are believed to possess super natural powers by Central American cultures and even to be love charms.

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