A brand-new garden, all about attracting hummingbirds, has become an exciting reality! Located in Bend’s Orchard Park, it is a demonstration garden, and the first of its kind in Central Oregon. It has been designed to specifically illustrate how to attract hummingbirds in our own
residential gardens using native plants.
The idea for this garden came from Barb Rumer, former President of Pollinator Pathway Bend, and the design concept originated from Gwen Bartonek, current President of PPB. It was funded by Bend Parks and Rec and all the native plants have been sourced from both Wintercreek Nursery in Bend and Great Basin Nursery in Bend.
This collaborative project also includes volunteers from East Cascades Bird Alliance and Wild Birds Unlimited. Each of the three groups brings its own strengths and interests to this project, and on May 3, after a steady rain the night before, volunteers from each of the groups met for a plant installation party. Representing ECBA were Maxine Gowen and Kathryn Cox. There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony later this summer after the plants have had time to settle in and grow! More fun to come will be when we will be able to stand back and watch the hummers thank us!
Volunteers will continue to be needed for additional plantings, for regular maintenance, and if you have questions, or would like to volunteer some time please send an email to ecba@ecbirds.org and write HUMMINGBIRD GARDEN on the subject line.
Hummingbird Garden at Bend’s Orchard Park Plant List
*Amelanchier alnifolia (Saskatoon Serviceberry)
Agastache cana (Hummingbird Mint)
Agastache rupestris (Giant Hyssop)
Aquilegia Formosa (Western Columbine)
*Chamaebatiaria millefolium (Desert Sweet)
Chamaenerion angustifolium (Fireweed)
*Erigionum ovalifolium (Sulfur Buckwheat)
Ipomopsis aggregate (Scarlet Gilia)
Lupinus albicaulis (Sickle Keeled Lupine)
Penstemon barbatus (Barbatus Penstemon)
Penstemon eatonii (Firecracker Penstemon)
Penstemon pinifolius (Pineleaf Penstemon)
Penstemon strictus (Rocky Mountain Penstemon)
*Phlox diffusa (Spreading Phlox)
Additional hummingbird native plant choices for Central Oregon:
Trees/Bushes: river birch, blue elderberry, currants, greenleaf manzanita, douglas spirea, oceanspray, desert sage
Perrenial: any penstemon, desert sage, western clematis, roundleaf alumroot, narrowleaf milkweed, showy milkweed, blue-eyed grass, Western blue flag iris, mountain hollyhock,
*plants that attract insects that hummingbirds like to eat for protein
