If you are searching for an attractive shrub that attracts hummingbirds, you should give serious thought to buying a weigela (Weigela x Florida); it produces a crop of long-lasting, red, trumpet-shaped blooms.  The blossoms grow singly and in clusters.

       The shrub’s blooming period extends from late spring into summer. 

       This shrub is capable of becoming 6 to 8 feet tall and 9 to 12 feet wide.  However, none of the weigelas my wife and I have grown in our Middle Georgia yard has ever grown that large.

       The only weigela we have planted also goes by the name Old Fashioned Weigela. This variety bears red flowers.  A dozen or more different varieties of weigela are on the market.  While they may attract hummingbirds, I personally cannot vouch for them.

       Weigela produces the most flowers when planted in full sun, however, it also grows in partial shade.  Once this shrub is established, it is quite drought-tolerant. 

       If you have a problem with deer pruning your plants, you will be pleased to know that weigela is not high on the white-tailed deer’s list of preferred browse plants.