A Safe Perching Spot is the Secret to Attracting More Hummingbirds to Your Yard – and Compact Trees Are the Perfect Pick

To encourage hummingbirds to visit your yard this spring, you'll likely be prioritizing feeders, flowers, and perhaps a few dashes of red – but it's easy to forget that perching spots are just as crucial.

Since hummingbirds spend a significant amount of time hovering in mid-air, they can tire out quickly, and this is why perches are so important. To attract as many hummingbirds as possible, you'll need to create at least a few sheltered perching spots to allow these delicate birds to rest and recharge.

According to experts, compact trees for natural hummingbird perching spots are the perfect solution. From redbud trees to lilac and serviceberry trees, there's a variety of options that will keep hummingbirds happy and add some visual interest to your garden – without taking up too much space.

Redbud Trees

Hummingbird perches come in plenty of different shapes and sizes; if you're looking for a quick fix, you can pick up a hummingbird swing (like this one from Amazon), or invest in a handy disc feeder (such as this 3-in-1 hummingbird feeder from Walmart).

If you're looking for trees that attract hummingbirds, however, it's best to think about nectar-rich options which also offer shaded perching spots – and redbuds are perfect.

You can pick up a live eastern redbud tree from Fast Growing Trees, and check out our guide on how to grow eastern redbuds, if you're in need of some advice. Ruby falls weeping redbud, also from Fast Growing Trees, is a more compact variety that works brilliantly in small backyards.

'A redbud tree is perfect for hummingbirds as it flowers really early in the season, right at the time when migratory hummingbirds are arriving,' explains Drew Swainston, Content Editor at Homes & Gardens.

You won't regret adding this gorgeous tree to your garden thanks to its pink and purple flowers, which are both beautiful and nectar-rich. Hummingbirds love to feed on them, but they can also perch on the branches of redbud trees between feeds.

'Redbud trees make a spectacular addition to your yard in early spring, when gorgeous blooms cover its bare branches,' Drew confirms. 'These blooms contain plenty of in nectar, which is ideal for hungry hummingbirds as they arrive on their long journey back north.'

Drew Swainston

Drew has worked as a writer since 2008 and was also a professional gardener for many years. As a trained horticulturist, he worked in prestigious historic gardens, including Hanbury Hall and the world-famous Hidcote Manor Garden. He also spent time as a specialist kitchen gardener at Soho Farmhouse and Netherby Hall, where he grew vegetables, fruit, herbs, and cut flowers for restaurants. Drew has written for numerous print and online publications and is an allotment holder and garden blogger. He was shortlisted for the Digital Gardening Writer of the Year at the 2025 Garden Media Guild Awards.

Crepe Myrtle

Crepe myrtle won't necessarily provide a rich nectar source for hummingbirds, but it will offer plenty of perching spots. Hummingbirds can safely grip onto the narrow branches of crepe myrtle plants.

Growing and caring for crepe myrtle is impressively simple; it's a fast-growing, drought tolerant plant which produces lovely pink blooms from summer through to fall.

You can find a handful of compact varieties – like pocomoke crepe myrtle from Fast Growing Trees – and you can also grow crepe myrtle in pots, if you fancy creating a hummingbird-friendly container garden.

Serviceberry Trees

Serviceberry flowers are some of the best native spring flowers to attract hummingbirds – and serviceberry trees themselves are a reliable choice if you want to plant a garden for pollinators like bees and butterflies, too.

'These trees are another example of early flowering trees which provide beneficial nectar for migrating hummingbirds,' says Drew.

Invest in an autumn brilliance serviceberry tree, like this one from Fast Growing Trees, and you can expect classic white flowers in springtime and blazing orange foliage in the fall.

'As food is scarce early in spring, hummingbirds can find nectar and also eat other small insects that are attracted to serviceberry trees,' adds Drew.

There are plenty of advantages to serviceberry trees; crucially, they have dense branches which make ideal hummingbird perches, but they are also easy to grow (and a widely underrated tree species, according to many gardeners.)

'There are many compact cultivars of these native trees that will thrive in containers,' says Drew. In fact, growing serviceberry in pots will help you to create a glorious wildlife garden that thrives all year round.

Lilac Shrubs

If you've been keen to start growing lilac, now is the perfect time to add it to your garden. It will bloom by late spring, and compact varieties (like dwarf Korean lilac, which you can find at Fast Growing Trees), are not only ideal for small spaces, but they're also beloved by hummingbirds.

'Compact varieties of lilac trees produce tubular flowers that are perfect for the long beaks of hummingbirds,' says Drew. 'The fragrant spring blooms are nectar-rich and will dazzle in shades of purple, pink, or white.'

You can also grow lilac in pots; even smaller varieties will develop sturdy branches which serve as brilliant perches for hummingbirds.

'Hummingbirds will flock to these flowers in late spring and early summer, when they return to northern regions,' says Drew.

What to Shop

Looking for more hummingbird-friendly garden ideas? The Temple of Bloom Seven-Son flower provides nesting spots, plenty of nectar, and a safe retreat from predators.

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