ruby throats show up in south Georgia early March, so any azalea/rhododendron in bloom between the 1st - 15th will do. Hummingbirds like azaleas and rhododendron regardless of the cultivar. I am going to guess from the "early blooming" statement you are hoping to attract them when they migrate in spring. Don't worry about the red color thing - it's overdone. Hummingbirds like flowers they can use and really don't seem to show a color preference. BUT visibility when flying over is great, i.e. red flowers will show up better than white. Late winter, early spring, Camellia japonica are good also - such as Winter's Star (pink) or Yuletide (red). Those are late winter examples, I am not familiar with early spring Camellia. Don't forget the Rufous Hummingbird is here all winter and becoming more common. Actually quite common, so keep some flowers for them! You can check ebird.com to see if any rufous are wintering in your area.

I will trade purple and white Datura seeds or check out my trade list for more! Let me know @ defrancoluv2ryd@msn.com . Thanks, Christine

I was unimpressed with the BESV that I grew last year. Didn't see the hummer at it at all; then again, there weren't that many blooms anyway. I grow Cypress Vines; it's a huge hit with the hummers. This year I picked up two Cardinal Climbers. Another favorite is Ipomoea coccinea "Orange Noah", but it's a HEAVY reseeder. It's nearly impossible to get rid of, but the hummers love it. I let my reseeders climb up my neighbors unpruned Rose of Sharon. Another winner is Mina lobata.

From an old thread in the GW Hummngbird Garden forum: RE: Hummingbird-Attracting Vine for Shade? * Posted by kelp 6 (My Page) on Sat, Aug 26, 06 at 7:59 I have 2 honeysuckles: Lonicera pericyclemenum 'Harlequin' and Lonicera serotina 'Florida' that are doing wonderful in mostly shade. Hope that helps you. End of post. Both vines listed at bottom left: Lonicera pericyclemenum Link to above thread: Hummingbird-Attracting Vine for Shade? A second thread has a wonderful name but all the vines I see in it would take part sun/part shade & are probably of no use to you with mostly shade. I'm including it in case there are non-vine shade plants that might interest you. From GW Hummingbird Garden forum: Shade Loving Plants for Hummingbirds Please update us here if you find a vine that works. I might want it, too, someday.