![]() It is good for rock gardens, meadows, and flower beds. It grows to 1.5 feet wide by 2 feet high and does well in containers or in the ground where massing Mealy Blue Sage in groups is impressive. ‘Victoria Blue’ is the native selection, while ‘Henry Duelberg’ is becoming a popular name for Mealy Blue Sage in many nurseries. Mealy Blue Sage has aromatic, gray-green leaves that smell nice to people, but deer don’t care for it. It has a mounding tendency and violet to blue to white tubular flowers on six to eight-inch flower spikes. It prefers sandy or gravelly soil but will adapt as long as the soil is very well drained. Care must be taken with transplants – it does not transplant well from the wild. It will bloom in partial shade to full sun, but avoid planting Mealy Blue Sage in wet areas. Mealy Blue Sage ( Salvia farinacea) is a hardy, native perennial that is highly drought and heat tolerant. It has pale bark, so even without its leaves and blooms it can add interest to your garden if placed in front of a dark background. Flame acanthus works well as a border plant or informal hedge and as a specimen plant. ![]() The leaves are small and thin, allowing the blooms to really show off. Supplemental water encourages flowering in the hottest times. It is late to leaf out in spring, so be patient, and can be pruned or even severely cut back in the early spring before leaf-out.įlame acanthus adapts well to sunny, well-drained sites and is a good choice for landscape areas with poor soil and reflected heat sources, like sidewalks and driveways. In very cold temperatures, Flame Acanthus can die back to its roots but will reemerge in spring from the ground. It is perfect for hummers’ beaks and tongues – so much so it is often called Hummingbird Bush! Another plus for gardeners is its bloom time – midsummer to frost. wrightii) is a drought tolerant, heat loving, native, perennial shrub that gets no more than 5 feet by 4 feet with red or orange blooms. Propagate Esperanza by cuttings or seed.įlame Acanthus ( Anisacanthus quadrifidus var. Esperanza is happy in any soil as long as it is well drained. It can be grown in full or partial sun and has a Fire-wise rating of 10, the highest fire-resistant rating. Periodic pruning will help it maintain a nice structure. It is deciduous and sometimes develops long, woody seed pods in the fall. The plant tolerates summer heat and will bloom from spring through fall. They are fast growing with bright yellow 2.5-inch flowers and shiny green foliage.Įsperanza grows 3 to 6 feet tall and 3 to 4 feet wide. It can be grown in a large container that can be moved into shelter during cold weather. Take a little extra care protecting this beauty from really cold temperatures. Denton County is positioned at its northernmost zone for cold hardiness. Here are a few easily found options to ponder.Įsperanza or Yellow Bells ( Tecoma stans) is a native, Texas Super Star plant. Hummers prefer long, tubular flowers they can stick their beaks and long tongues (which have straw-like tubes) into to suck the nectar out. So, if you want to provide a steady supply of nectar for these high-energy delights, then add some of their favorite plants to your garden. Natural nectar is preferred by hummingbirds. Never substitute honey or sugar substitutes for regular sugar – they cause bacterial and fungal threats to the birds.įlowering plants that provide nectar for hummingbirds It is actually detrimental to the hummers! Water and sugar are all they need in a 4 or 5 to 1 ratio – 4 or 5 cups of boiled water to 1 cup of sugar, mix it up, cool, and serve to your guests. The feeders we put out should be considered supplemental food at most – and please don’t add any colored dye to the food. Hummingbirds are unique fliers with the ability to fly up, down, backward, and to hover in place. Hummingbirds are important pollinators for tube-shaped flowers since pollen gets stuck to their heads when they dip deeply into a flower to feed. Sugar from nectar is their main food source, but they also eat small spiders and insects caught in flight for protein. Commonly seen in Denton County, ruby-throated hummingbirds, among others, migrate over vast distances to and from Mexico, flying nonstop across the Gulf of Mexico after they “bulk up” for the flight. A 170-pound man would have to burn 155,000 calories a day to equal what a hummingbird burns in a day! Hummers have to eat every 10 to 15 minutes during the day and then go into hibernation at night. ![]() Hummingbirds are here and those delightful, feisty beauties are hungry! To keep up the energy required to go from 0 to 60 mph in 3 feet takes lots of calories. Hummingbird Photo by: Pete_Gregoire, wikimedia Logos and Public Communications Requirements.DCMGA Logo Clothing and Replacement Badges.
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