Ruby–throated hummingbirds announced their return to my garden this spring by feeding at the native honeysuckle climbing along my deck. Lonicera sempervirens commonly referred to as trumpet honeysuckle is native to the eastern US. Although a rapid grower, its spread is restrained when compared to the heavily fragrant Japanese honeysuckle, L. japonica. The latter, a serial strangler of native vegetation, is also in my yard but not by design. It offers endless hours of tug of vine to exorcise.

Scientists have observed hummingbirds and honeysuckles over time noted each has specialized structures and habits to benefit the other. Honeysuckles and hummingbirds can inform and train the gardener to welcome both forms of life.

Darwin observed how the growth tips of some vines swirled in search of an object to twine around. Honeysuckles are this type of twining vine. When first working to train my honeysuckle to climb on my deck, I placed the stems in a clockwise direction from ground level only to find the vine unfurled itself. Honeysuckles twine counterclockwise; it’s in their genes. The circumnutation of twining vines is either clockwise or counterclockwise depending on the species.

Hummingbirds’ long tongues fit into tubular flowers. Once honeysuckle is situated properly and twining to its hearts content, how does it accommodate a hummingbird? For starters, the two inch long tubular flowers are designed for pollination by hummingbirds. Five stamens covered in pollen protrude from each flower. In the center of the stamens is one female reproductive organ, the stigma. When the hummingbird probes for nectar, its head gets dusted in pollen. As the hummer vis- its subsequent flowers, pollen sticks to the stigmas, pollinating each flower. Scientists discovered that each flower species deposits pollen in one specific spot on a hummingbird’s head to increase the chances of cross–pollination.

L.sempervirens ‘John Clayton’ is a yellow flowered honeysuckle attracting hummingbirds too. A hummingbird’s beak and the long thin tongue have evolved to fit into tubular flowers. The split tip of the tongue extends deeply into the flower quickly lapping up nectar through capillary action and draining a flower’s nectary. The tongue grasps insects and spiders, too. Nectar provides fuel whereas arthropods and arachnids provide protein, vitamins, and minerals.

The fact that the blooming time of honeysuckle coincides with the ruby–throated hummingbird’s long migration journey from Central America and the start of breeding season in South Carolina is highly desirable, too.

The brightly colored hummingbirds may match the flowers they visit making an excellent camouflage. The camouflage colors, small size of the bird, and swift flight make it difficult for predators like birds of prey to detect. Flowers with red and orange petals or bracts signal instant nectar to the rapid transit hummingbird. However, yellow flowered cultivars of trumpet honeysuckle like ‘John Clayton’ also attract hummers.

Red trumpet honeysuckle is easily spotted by fast–flying hummers. The aerial skills of hummingbirds allow it to reach the downward dangling blossoms of the trumpet honeysuckle. Blossoms are arranged in six–flowered pinwheels or whorls around a stem with no landing platform. Hummingbirds are adept at hovering in mid–air to secure nectar from six taps in succession.

Discover the coevolution of honeysuckle and hummingbirds in your garden.