Do Hummingbirds Like Geraniums?

Geraniums are popular plants in many households and gardens due to their bright, varying colors, strong smell, and easy maintenance. They also appear to be pretty resistant to some animals, as few tend to enjoy their fragrance. For example, do hummingbirds like geraniums?

For the most part, hummingbirds won’t choose to feed on geraniums, though they may find them appealing. Geraniums do not typically fit the flower profile that hummingbirds look for when it comes to hunting down nectar – and this applies to a few other pollinators, too.

Why don’t hummingbirds like geraniums? 

First of all, the geranium’s shape isn’t ideal for hummingbirds to seek nectar from. Hummingbirds generally prefer tubular flowers that match the shape of their beaks – so it’s easier for them to get nectar out of. However, geraniums have flat petals – offering less than ideal access for these birds!

Geraniums also tend to grow quite close to the ground. Hummingbirds won’t always fly so low when hunting for nectar, meaning these plants can go unnoticed. 

On top of this, geraniums don’t always give off enough nectar to satisfy hummingbirds. While they may appeal to smaller pollinators, hummingbirds need a relatively huge number of calories to survive. 

That said, various anecdotal accounts suggest hummingbirds do visit geraniums from time to time. However, they’re not the best blooms to bank on for keeping their nutrition in check.

Thankfully, there are plenty of other flowers hummingbirds love – such as the butterfly bush, snapdragons, and impatiens. While you may see a few hummingbirds fluttering around your geraniums, it’s unlikely they will get much out of them.

Do geraniums attract any other creatures? 

Insects tend to be common visitors to geraniums, with mites, budworms, slugs, and aphids making a beeline for these blooms. Sawflies, too, happen to be common pests around geraniums.

However, what’s especially interesting is that bigger animals that normally munch on flowers, such as deer, rabbits, rats, and raccoons, tend to all steer clear of geraniums. Much of this is to do with the odor they emit, as well as the thickness of their leaves.

Therefore, geraniums are fantastic if you’re looking for flowers that smell strongly and won’t bring hordes of critters to your garden! They’re not so good, however, if you want to help pollinators such as hummingbirds.

Growing geraniums in your garden 

The great news is, aside from being mostly pest-resistant, geraniums are also easy to grow! They are relatively weather-resistant, too, although it is a good idea to keep them in pots so that you can bring them inside before the winter rolls around. 

They need to be kept or grown in moist soil – and ideally in plenty of sunlight. Ensure that the soil is well-drained to keep it healthy for your geraniums and any other blooms you’re growing alongside. Remember to dead-head geraniums throughout the seasons to keep them regrowing. 

Geraniums can work well as both indoor houseplants and blooms that grow in your garden soil.

What flowers attract hummingbirds? 

Hummingbirds love brightly colored flowers, such as azaleas, dipladenia, clematis, and zinnias. In fact, if you’d like to attract hummingbirds to your garden, the more varied the colors you have available, the better. 

You should also consider choosing flowers with tubular shapes, wherever possible, to make feeding easier on your visitors.

If you are concerned that there are too many geraniums in your garden that deter hummingbirds, then you can rest easy knowing that there are plenty of flowers you can plant alongside that will satisfy their needs. Did you know hummingbirds prefer a variety of potted flowers and annual blooms?

It is also good to keep a hummingbird feeder in your garden. As many colorful flowers as you may have in your yard, hummingbirds need to visit up to 2,000 flowers every day to find the nectar they need to survive!

Therefore, keeping a hummingbird feeder full of sugar water is a great way of ensuring that they always have a food source. Keep your feeder clean and as full as possible to maximize hummingbird returns.

Don’t lose heart – if you love geraniums, they can still benefit your garden. If you are trying to deter bugs and pests, then geraniums act as a wonderful, natural repellent – and look delightful.