With darkness approaching, I found myself in one of those folding chairs on my deck about three days after I wrote the first of the two promised articles about hummingbirds. I was on the opposite side of the house from my hummingbird feeders.

As usual, I was staring off into nature hoping to see whatever I might see. To my surprise, a hummingbird appeared about 15 feet off the ground in a 25 foot tall native American Red Maple. Working a maple tree in September wasn't a search for nectar but a search for insects. His delayed departure suggests that the tree was providing a good meal.

I'll digress slightly to suggest that native plants are strong candidates for the garden. They support a diversity of life usually without showing many symptoms of damage. The hummingbird told me that my maple tree is loaded with insects, yet there is no visual evidence to suspect their presence.

Hummingbirds like openings in forests and the forest edge. Thus they can easily be attracted to rural or suburban gardens that provide a mix of tall trees, shrubs, good nectar plants and some open lawn or meadow.

If you have observed hummingbirds, you may have noticed that they will feed close to the ground but also can frequently be seen perched or seeking food well off the ground. Our deck is high, and the sides often host climbing vines with tubular flowers. If you think vertically, you can get a lot of action in a small space.

Although they seem to be in constant motion, they occasionally do need to rest. Mine have found a favored twiggy limb outside my living room window about 30 feet above the ground. If you lack the tall trees or shrubs, a post with a few brushy branches attached will provide a wonderful substitute.

Conventional wisdom holds that hummingbirds favor red tubular flowers. True, but I have also seen them working actively at pink, orange, blue or yellow flowers. It is reported that they usually avoid flowers with strong fragrance. Also try to cover the season they are here.

In this area, the northward migration starts in April and the return south lasts until early October. We also get a goodly number of nesting birds.

To assist in nest building, supply some fuzzy plants. Included in the list of favorites are the fuzzy stems of cinnamon fern and the common pussy willow and several that will take either will power or neglect to supply. Thistles and dandelions are favorites, too.

When selecting plants, aim for groupings of the same plant to provide plenty of nectar. Although there are many natives that would do the job, even the purists will make exceptions for salvia, a non-native. Salvias should be the backbone of any effort to bring hummingbirds to your garden.

Of course all the other common bird-bringing ideas apply. Think about water, protecting their insect food source with judicial use of insecticides and strict supervision of your cat(s).

I'll end with the best news of all. Hummingbirds have long memories and once they find you, especially during migration, they will return year after year.