Plant These Two Self-Seeding Flowers Together To For A Hummingbird-Filled Garden

There are few birds more fun to watch than the incredible and iridescent hummingbird. Not only are they beautiful, but they're also beneficial pollinators. While you can certainly use hummingbird feeders to encourage visits from the little birds, an even better option is to plant flowers to welcome them to your space. While that may initially seem like a lot of work, if you opt for flowers that self seed, your hummingbird garden will regrow each year as if by magic. Two of the best flowers for this are cosmos and calendula.

Not only do cosmos and calendula flowers help attract hummingbirds, especially if you opt for red or orange cultivars, but they also grow well together, as both plants thrive in similar conditions. And while they are annuals in much of the United States, their ability to reseed ensures you'll have a garden of flowers year after year. This also means you can easily grow these flowers from seed, giving you a pollinator garden in no time and for relatively little money. 

While you could start the seeds indoors to get your cosmos and calendula garden going, both flowers' seeds can also be direct sown into the soil. The calendula seeds can be sown before your last frost, but be sure to wait until after your last frost of the season to sow the cosmos seeds. Find a spot with full sun and well draining soil to ensure they thrive. Both cosmos and calendulas are relatively drought tolerant, so be sure to avoid overwatering them once they are established. Though deadheading will help the plants produce more blooms, it's important to let some of the flowers go to seed so they can sprout next season and renew your garden. 

Cosmos and calendulas are especially popular with pollinators like butterflies, but opting for red or orange shades should be great for attracting the attention of hummingbirds too. (The little birds are particularly drawn to those colors.) Consider growing some perennial plants for hummingbirds nearby as well. Creating a whole pollinator or hummingbird garden can be a snap when you grow a mix of low-maintenance perennials and self-seeding annuals.