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One of the tricks for bringing butterflies and hummingbirds into your garden is to concentrate
on plants that are nectar bearing. These are plants that are carrying sugar that the birds
and the butterflies both need. Here’s an example of that. Notice that my hummingbird
feeder is not red except for the feeder platform itself. That’s all that’s necessary for
hummingbirds to be attracted. There’s a fair amount of evidence now that says that
number one, red dye in your feed formula is not necessary at all, and they’re beginning
to think that it might cause beak cancer. So, as long as there’s a part of the feeder
that’s red, or a red blooming plant near it, that’s all that’s necessary to bring
your hummingbirds in and keep them here. Roses are not nectar bearing, but will draw
different butterflies and hummingbirds to the garden. If, on the other hand, there are
plants near it that actually do feed, this is how you’ll keep hummingbirds and butterflies
in your garden all of the time. Asclepias which is also called the “tropical milkweed.”
And it’s definitely a butterfly drawer. This blooms almost all year long, and though
it’s a little bit on the wild side, it’s definitely worth putting up with seed heads
and the different things that it does because the fact that it’s a big butterfly drawer.
And here comes one now.