The plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies we grow most at Oliver Greenhouse are five summer annuals: canna lilies, mandevilla, petunias, calibrachoa, and verbena. They all bloom long, all take Michigan sun, and between them you can fill a hanging basket, a patio pot, or a whole in-ground bed. This is the shortlist we actually point customers to when they walk up to the wagons and ask what to plant to bring in the hummingbirds.
There are plenty of lists on the internet that tell you to plant bee balm, coneflower, and Joe Pye weed. Those are fine plants — we like them — and MSU Extension’s pollinator gardening resources are worth reading if you want a more native-focused garden. But most people who come by the stand in May aren’t looking for natives to plant in a back bed. They want something blooming now, something they can set on the porch and watch ruby-throated hummingbirds work by dinnertime. That’s who this is for.
We’re on 24 Mile Road in Macomb County, so everything below is written from the zone-6 perspective. The timing, the sun notes, the care tips — they’re what actually happens in southeast Michigan, not a generic blog post written from who-knows-where.
What flower attracts both hummingbirds and butterflies?
Plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies tend to share a few things: they’re nectar-rich, they bloom for a long stretch, and they’re built in shapes pollinators can reach — shallow trumpets, clustered tubes, or broad landing pads. Color helps too, especially red, pink, purple, and orange.
Our shortlist of five plants that do it well:
- Petunias — wide, shallow trumpets in nearly every color
- Calibrachoa (million bells) — tiny trumpets, nonstop blooms
- Verbena — flat clusters that butterflies can land on
- Mandevilla — big red or pink trumpets made for hummingbirds
- Canna lily — tall tropical spikes with tubular orange, red, or yellow flowers
Every one of these is an annual in Michigan, meaning you plant them in late May and enjoy them through October. None will make it through our winters. But they’ll all earn their keep over one Michigan summer, and they’ll all attract both birds and butterflies.
5 plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies we grow at Oliver Greenhouse
If someone asks us for plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies in one trip, these are the five annuals we start with. They give you height, trailing color, porch baskets, patio pots, and in-ground options without turning the project into a full backyard redesign.
Canna lily — the tropical showstopper hummingbirds can’t resist
Cannas are the tallest thing on this list. A mature plant in a big pot can hit four or five feet tall by August, topped with clusters of tubular flowers in red, orange, or bright yellow. The leaves alone are a conversation piece — broad, paddle-shaped, sometimes striped or bronze.
Hummingbirds love cannas because the flowers are big enough to read from across a yard and shaped for exactly their beak. We see them more on cannas than on almost anything else once the plants are in full bloom in July.
Plant cannas in full sun, in rich soil, and water them generously — they were bred from tropical plants near the equator, and they drink. A single canna in a 14-inch patio pot makes a statement near a porch step or on a corner of the deck. In the ground, they do best in a spot that gets sun all afternoon.
We stock them as started plants in May and early June. Dig the rhizomes in fall if you want to save them for next year, or treat them as annuals — cannas aren’t cheap, but they’re also hard to beat for summer drama.
Mandevilla — the climbing hummingbird vine for trellises and patios
Do hummingbirds like mandevilla? Yes — and more than almost any other annual we carry. The big red or pink trumpet flowers are shaped almost perfectly for a hummingbird’s beak, and a mandevilla on a patio trellis will have them visiting daily by mid-July.
Mandevilla is a tropical climbing vine. Give it a small trellis or obelisk in a pot, and it’ll twine its way up and bloom from June through first frost. The classic variety has rich red flowers the size of a silver dollar. There are pinks, whites, and hot-coral hybrids too.
A mandevilla in a 12- or 14-inch pot on a sunny patio is our most-recommended hummingbird plant. It doesn’t sprawl, it doesn’t take up much ground, and it puts on a show at eye level where you can watch the birds work it. The one catch: mandevilla wants warmth. Don’t put it outside until nights are reliably above 50°F — usually Memorial Day weekend here in Macomb. A cold snap will stall it for weeks.
Feed weekly, water when the top inch of soil dries out, and deadhead occasionally to keep the blooms coming.
Petunias — do hummingbirds really like them? (Yes.)
Do hummingbirds like petunias? Yes. Petunias — especially Supertunia and Wave varieties in red, pink, or purple — are a hummingbird favorite. The flower shape is a shallow trumpet that hummingbirds can reach into easily, and they bloom nonstop from May through frost if you feed them weekly.
Petunias are the most-planted flowering annual in America, and for good reason. They’re cheap, they come in every color, and the newer trailing varieties (Supertunia Vista Bubblegum is the one we can’t keep on the wagons) don’t need deadheading. Plant them in a hanging basket, a porch pot, or the edge of a bed — they’ll trail out and bloom until the frost knocks them down.
For hummingbirds specifically, go for the red, pink, and purple varieties over the whites. The birds see red first. That said, once they find the plant, they’ll work every color on it.
One thing to watch: petunias are hungry. Feed them every single week with a water-soluble fertilizer. Skip feeding and the plants stall by early August. That’s not a petunia problem, that’s a feeding problem.
Calibrachoa (million bells) — nonstop color in hanging baskets
Do hummingbirds like calibrachoa? Yes. Calibrachoa look like miniature petunias, and hummingbirds work them just the same. The flowers are smaller — maybe the size of a dime — but there are way, way more of them, and calibrachoa self-cleans, meaning spent flowers drop off on their own with no deadheading.
We plant calibrachoa in hanging baskets more than anything else. A 12-inch basket full of Superbells in Cherry Red or Coral Sunrise will be covered in flowers by June and stay that way until frost. Mix it with petunias in a big basket or run it on its own in a smaller one.
Calibrachoa wants full sun, consistent water, and weekly feeding — same as petunias. They also like their soil on the slightly acidic side, which most basket mixes already are. If the new growth starts looking pale and yellow by midsummer, they’re hungry. Feed and they’ll green back up within a week.
A hanging basket of calibrachoa on a sunny porch is one of the simplest ways we know to bring hummingbirds right up to the house.
Verbena — the butterfly and hummingbird magnet for full sun
Do hummingbirds like verbena? Yes — and butterflies do too, maybe even more. Verbena blooms come in flat clusters about the size of a half-dollar, which makes a perfect landing pad for butterflies, and the individual florets are tubular enough for hummingbirds to work.
Verbena is the butterfly plant on this list. We see monarchs, swallowtails, and painted ladies on verbena more than on anything else we grow. Hummingbirds work it too, especially the red and purple varieties.
Plant verbena in full sun. It’s tough, it handles heat better than most annuals, and the trailing varieties (the Superbena series is our go-to) spill beautifully out of a pot or basket. Water moderately — verbena doesn’t want to sit wet — and feed every couple of weeks.
A pot of verbena next to a canna or mandevilla gives you the whole pollinator spectrum in one spot: verbena for the butterflies, the taller plants for the hummingbirds. That combo is the one we’d plant if someone asked us to design a single pollinator container for their patio.
Designing with plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies in Michigan (zone 6a–6b)
Best hanging baskets and patio containers
For a hanging basket that pulls in hummingbirds all summer, we’d plant a 12-inch basket with a red Supertunia as the anchor, calibrachoa around the edge, and a sprig of verbena weaving through. Sun, water, weekly feeding, and you’re done.
For a patio pot, go bigger. A 14- or 16-inch pot with a mandevilla on a trellis in the middle, canna behind it for height, verbena and calibrachoa trailing over the rim. That single container will keep a hummingbird coming back every day from July through September.
In-ground bed combinations that bloom all summer
If you’ve got a sunny bed along a fence or a porch, plant cannas in the back for height, a drift of petunias in the middle, and verbena along the front edge. You won’t get much shade on any of those from each other, and you’ll have a wave of color from thigh-high down to ground level.
Mandevilla works in the ground too if you’ve got a trellis or an obelisk to run it up. Treat it like an annual vine.
When to plant in Macomb County (last frost and beyond)
Our last frost in Macomb County usually lands around May 15. That’s the earliest we’d set any of these plants outside overnight. If you’re planning the rest of your spring timing, our month-by-month Michigan planting guide walks through what to do before and after that window. If you’re itching to plant before then, keep them in a garage or under cover for cold nights.
Mandevilla and canna in particular want warm nights — mid-50s and up. Don’t rush them. A cold snap will stall a mandevilla for two or three weeks, and cannas won’t push new growth below about 60°F.
Memorial Day weekend is our safe-planting target. By then the soil is warm, the nights are done with their tricks, and everything goes to work.
How to keep the blooms going until frost
Watering and feeding through a hot Michigan summer
All five of these plants are heavy feeders. Water-soluble fertilizer once a week, mixed into the watering can, is the pattern we use. If you’re busy, a slow-release granular worked into the soil at planting time will carry you for a few weeks, but we still recommend topping up with liquid feed once the summer heat kicks in.
Baskets dry out fast. In July and August, expect to water a hanging basket once a day, sometimes twice if it’s windy or sunny. In-ground plantings need less, but they still like a deep soak twice a week in a dry stretch.
Deadheading and pinching for nonstop color
Supertunia and calibrachoa self-clean, so you don’t have to deadhead. Old-style petunias do need deadheading — pinch off the spent blooms so the plant doesn’t waste energy setting seed. Same goes for verbena; cut the flower clusters back once they’ve faded.
Canna flower spikes finish in waves. When a spike is done, snip it off near the base and another will come up behind it. Mandevilla doesn’t need much deadheading; it’ll keep pushing new flowers on its own.
Halfway through the summer, around mid-July, give petunias and calibrachoa a light haircut — trim them back by a third. It looks rough for a week, and then they come roaring back fuller than before and bloom hard through September.
Frequently asked questions
What is the number one plant to attract hummingbirds?
If we had to pick one, it’d be mandevilla. The big trumpet flowers are shaped almost perfectly for a hummingbird’s beak, and a single vine on a patio trellis will have them visiting daily by mid-July. Petunias are a close second because they’re cheap and foolproof.
What does it mean if a hummingbird hovers in front of you?
Usually nothing mystical — they’re just curious. Hummingbirds investigate anything bright, especially red clothing or a red flower you’re holding. They’re also smart enough to remember people who keep feeders full, so if it’s happening in your yard, take it as a compliment.
Where do hummingbirds go at night to sleep?
They roost in sheltered spots in trees or shrubs, usually tucked in against a branch out of the wind. On cold nights they can drop into a state called torpor, slowing their heart rate way down to conserve energy until the sun comes back up.
What are the best annuals for hummingbirds in Michigan?
Petunias, calibrachoa, verbena, mandevilla, and salvia are the five we plant the most. All are annuals here in zone 6 — they won’t survive a Michigan winter — but they’ll bloom from Mother’s Day through October if you keep them watered and fed.
Come see these plants in person at Oliver Greenhouse
Pictures don’t really do any of these five plants justice. If you’re within driving distance of Macomb, stop by the greenhouse on 24 Mile Road and pick out a mandevilla trellis or a hanging basket of Supertunias in person. We grow all of these plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies right here, and we’re happy to help you put together a pollinator pot that’ll have hummingbirds working your porch by the Fourth of July.
We’re open seven days a week through the growing season. Come see what’s on the wagons.