I guess I spoke too soon. I now have an immature Rufous Hummingbird that seems pretty smitten with the Cuphea 'Tiny Mice'. I saw him/her go to it this morning and figured he wouldn't stay, but he kept going from flower to flower, pausing quite long at individual flowers apparently getting nectar. I saw him in there two more times this morning. Maybe the cool weather we have had the last few days has boosted nectar production as I also noticed some bumblebees visiting the flowers, shoving their heads/faces as far in the tubes as possible to get the nectar. Maybe complaining about a plant not getting used is all it takes.

Anyways, thought I would share that the Cuphea is now getting used...a plant I will now grow next year for its wonderful floriferousness (is that a word?) AND use by hummers...if I can find it locally at my nursery next year.

Happy Humming.

Jeff

Maybe complaining about a plant not getting used is all it takes. I don't think so or we would all have at least a hundred hummers swarming our plants. lol



Russ Thompson
http://e-hummingbirds.com
http://vimeo.com/hummingbirds
http://hummingbirds.photoshop.com
Louisville, Kentucky

I've wondered about the different species of cupheas in regards to HB usage. They are such a nice plants and I love the flowers! Now I won't mind expanding my cuphea collection to other species. Thanks for the post!

Sandra