HI Christie. I don't know the answer to this question because I am new to Hunningbirds. But this is interesting, and I am looking forward to hearing the responses that this question gets.

Maureen

It is far less common in the midwest and east coast than Ribes odoratum, but hummers in the PNW adore flowering currant, Ribes sanguineum. It blooms very early here, generally late February/early March, far earlier than my R. odoratum, and with long flower panicles in hot pinks and white, so very attractive to my overwintering Anna's. To be honest, I've never seen the hummers visit the odoratum - perhaps by the time it blooms they have other, more desirable plants to tempt them.

I have Red Buckeye, native columbine also for early blooms you can't beat having salvia coccineas (red, pink, white), coral honeysuckle. I had a Nicotiana mutibilis that bloomed early that the hummers went to and spigelia marilandica-Indian pink too but I probably lost that one due to the storm.
Helena

I planted several flowering red currant cuttings this fall thanks to another very generous PNW gardener. I am not looking for any of mine to be ready to bloom this year but the early bloom for my hummers was the reason I planted them. I also have native columbine that should bloom this year and I have a Rhododendron Catawbiense and a non native Azalea and coral honeysuckle.

Red buckeye is an excellent choice if you have room for it. A large shrub in the same family is the Bottlebrush buckeye but it has white flowers, I believe, but the hummers also use it ( have sown the seeds of 5 of these in hopes of getting at least one or two.

Penny

I did some research on flowering currant last year and got the impression that it won't do well here. It must like cooler summers. It's a shame because I think it would be prettier than clove currant. I should get some salvia coccinea volunteers this year and hopefully some native columbine seedlings too. My other columbine reseeds abundantly.

My clove currant flowers before the hummers arrive They're generally here around May 1 but the clove currant flowers in April. A nice plant though - the fragrance fills the air and if an early hummer comes through (or the currant flowers late), I'm sure they'd appreciate it. It suckers and spread but that isn't all bad. I got my start of it from my neighbor across the road who mowed the original plant until it died. Never mind, mine has thrived for almost 30 years now.

Would it also be possible to attact early travelers - by placing brightly colored fake flowers next to your feeder.

I am also wondering if there is some long term benefit to have them come to your backyard early. Will they be more inclined to nest, or stay all summer?

If you get them early then they probably have nesting areas close buy and they may just stay all summer.

The benefit of them coming early is that I get to enjoy them that much longer....no other reason necessary LOL!

Penny

I would love to try currants but I'm afraid to because we've got about 10 huge white pines - there's some risk of a rust disease. Blueberries bloom pretty early and tolerate hot summers. I've never seen a hummer on mine but some people have.

Lisa

There are Dwarf red buckeyes for sale on Ebay right now. BUY IT NOW price of $3.99 plus $4.05 for standard shipping. the seller is Viola Valley in Tenn. I placed my order on Sunday so I anticipate receiving them before the end of the week. These are young saplings that are between 12 and 18 inches tall and probably won't bloom this year but I can wait another year for them to bloom.

Penny