Home Guides SF GateA Petunias are good for bees.

The common garden petunia is one of the plants recommended for hummingbirds.Hummers will visit hybrid petunias, especially if there is nothing better in the neighborhood, but if you plant them your hummers may be left wishing that you would plant a better nectar-producer.hummer visits may be lost if you rely too much on plants that don't produce a lot of flowers.The parents of the hybrid petunia are Petunia axillaris and P. integrifolia.It is no surprise that the hybrid petunias don't produce much nectar since it is not a trait selected for by Petunia breeders.

Petunia-lovers need not despair because hybrid petunias are not great hummer plants.Petunias are hummingbird-pollinated in the wild.Petunia exserta is a very rare petunia native to a small region in Brazil.The red flowers and exserted stamens are visible in the close-up picture at the top of the post.I have been lusting after this rare Petunia ever since I read about it, but have never been able to find a source for it.Annie's Annuals has it in their catalog and at their nursery.They grew their plants from seed provided by a graduate student at Michigan State University.

I got a few plants late last summer from Annie's Annuals and put them into a pot.I will be able to grow enough plants to give Petunia exserta a thorough test in my garden next year because I have been collecting a lot of seed.During my limited trial this year, I have seen hummingbirds visit the blooms.The plants were already growing when I opened the mail-order boxes.They started to bloom when the weather cooled down.I will grow it next year in pots and in my beds.

I have been growing hummingbird plants for the past 10 years or so, and am interested in trying Petunia exserta.Do you know where I could get some seeds?I don't need many for a trial, and I'm willing to buy them, send a SASE, etc.I will be willing to share the seeds with my supplier if this is the only petunia I grow this year.

Thanks for the compliment, Tom.I don't know if there is a source for seed for Petunia exserta.I bought a few plants from Annie's Annuals last summer and collected some seed from them to start my 2012 garden.If you are interested in purchasing plants mail-order, Annie's Annuals has plants available now.I have distributed all the extra seeds from the initial collection.If you haven't found a source by then, I'll send you some seed after I have had a chance to collect more.

I only see a male occasionally in my garden this year, but he has been looking at the Petunia exsertas before coming to the feeders.If kept in a container until the root is bound and then replanted into the garden, this plant is a no brainer to grow.These plants are larger than the common hybrid sold in garden centers.One plant can fill up a container.

You give me hope!I haven't seen a lot of hummer use so far this season despite the fact that they've been growing very well.mosquies are a nuisance outside, and I haven't had time to keep an eye on the patch outside because the bed where they are planted is not easily viewable from the house.I will be posting a Petunia exserta update soon.

I work for a botanical garden in Virginia and one of my responsibilities is the care, maintenance and design of the Hummingbird Garden.I would love to have Petunia exserta in our collection and would like to start it from seed, as this is the preferred method by our plant propagator.Is anyone willing to send or sell any seeds?If someone knows of a source, I can send a stamped envelope or buy seeds.I don't want to buy a plant and have it shipped across the country.

I will be collecting seed within a month or so and will send some to you.

If you have any left, I would love to have some of it.I will send a SASE if you let me know.

Are you going to keep growing this?I got a lot of flowers but only one hummer looked at the plants.I'm thinking of trying something else.

We have been selling P. exserta at our plant sale for over three years.

How hasunia exserta worked out with the hummingbirds and as a garden plant?

I tried P. exserta for two years in my old garden and had disappointing results, as did most people on the hummingbird forum who tried it in their gardens.I saw hummingbird use, but not as much as I had expected.I will try it again this year or next after years of not growing it.I want to get a better idea of its value by planting a large patch of it.If you only have one or a few hummingbird plants in your garden, they don't get a lot of attention.