Nectary Cardinal Flower — Hummingbird Nectar Mix

The Flower

Of all the red flowers in a North American garden, none burns with the same fervent intensity as Cardinal Flower. It rises from streamsides and rain gardens in late July and holds its brilliant scarlet spires through October — precisely when ruby-throated hummingbirds are gathering energy for the long southbound migration to Central America. In the northeastern United States, the ruby-throat is the cardinal flower’s sole effective pollinator: bill and head geometry match the flower’s architecture so perfectly that the bird and the bloom appear to have been designed for each other.

The Formula

Nectary Cardinal Flower is formulated after the sucrose-rich nectar profile of Lobelia cardinalis. Cardinal flower nectar carries a sucrose-dominant sugar profile consistent with all long-tubular hummingbird-pollinated flowers, along with the trace electrolyte mineral fraction that plain sugar water lacks: potassium as the dominant cation, plus trace calcium, magnesium, and sodium. The amino acid fraction — glutamine, proline, and related compounds — reflects what the birds find in the real flower.

When to Use It

Cardinal Flower blooms from July through October, with peak bloom in August and September — the precise window of fall migration. Use from late July through October. The variety to have when September arrives.

Key Features:

• Formulated after Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower) nectar chemistry

• Sucrose-dominant profile calibrated to the ornithophilous Lobelia genus

• Trace electrolyte blend: potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium

• Key amino acids: glutamine and proline

• No red dye, no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives

• Pure white cane sugar base — no boiling required

• 8 oz bag makes 1 quart (32 oz) of nectar

• Resealable bag; shelf-stable up to 2 years unopened