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 Sunflowers are likely the first seed-producing
plant that comes to mind. Their dark brown centers turn to seeds
that attract a wide variety of birds and of course squirrels to your
yard. Add a unique flare to your sunflower collection with the
All-America Selections (AAS) winner Sunflower Ring of Fire. Its
chocolate brown center is surrounded by a ring of red petals tipped
in gold. The 4- to 5-feet-tall plants reach their peak late in the
season, adding a fresh look to any flowerbed.
AAS Winner Purple Majesty Millet is another bird magnet. Tolerant of
heat and drought it grows 3 to 5 feet tall and its green leaves turn
purple in the sunlight. Twelve-inch-long flower spikes top the
plant, making it the perfect thriller in container gardens, backdrop
in flowerbeds or addition to garden bouquets. But you’ll want to
leave most of the flowers on the plants to produce seeds that bring
in the birds.
Another group of AAS Winners, the Salvia Summer Jewel™ series, bloom
earlier and more prolifically than other similar varieties on the
market. You can choose from white, pink, red and lavender flowers
that attract butterflies and hummingbirds. And as their flowers turn
to seeds, you will find colorful goldfinches flocking to the plants.
Coneflowers are well known for their bird appeal. Our native purple
and pale purple coneflowers are always a good choice, but a few
relatively new hardy varieties increase the color options for
gardeners. The 2020 AAS Winner Sombrero® Baja Burgundy was trialed
for three years, survived brutal winter and summer conditions and
continued to produce deep-violet-red flowers midsummer to frost.
Cheyenne Spirit Echinacea produces a mix of purple, pink, red and
orange flowers while PowWow Wild Berry’s compact plants are topped
with deep rose-purple flowers. Start these two from seed in early
spring and be rewarded with colorful flowers the first summer.
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A popular companion of coneflowers, black-eyed Susans,
are sure to add a bright spot of color to any garden. And as the
flowers fade, they provide an abundance of seed for birds to enjoy
fall through winter. The 2020 AAS Winner American Gold Rush provides
all the beauty plus a resistance to Septoria leaf spot disease.
Longtime favorite flowers like cosmos, coreopsis, marigolds and
zinnias also help bring in the seed-eating birds. Select single
flowered varieties for maximum seed production. Radiance and Cosmic
Orange cosmos, Sahara Starlight and the Profusion series of zinnias
are a few outstanding performers to consider.
Look for other award-winning varieties that attract seed-eating
birds, hummingbirds and other pollinators to your garden on the AAS
website (all-americaselections.org). AAS is a non-profit trialing
organization with test gardens and volunteer judges across the
United States and Canada. Winners are selected for their outstanding
performance in home gardens and containers.
Increase your garden’s beauty, decrease maintenance and bring in the
birds with a few of these winning flower varieties.
Melinda Myers has written more than 20 gardening books, including
Small Space Gardening. She hosts The Great Courses “How to Grow
Anything” gardening DVD series and the nationally syndicated
Melinda’s Garden Moment TV & radio segments. Myers is a columnist
and contributing editor for Birds & Blooms magazine and was
commissioned by AAS for her expertise to write this article. Myers’
web site is www.melindamyers.com.
[photo courtesy of All-America
Selections] |
