Native to eastern North America Aquilegia canadensis (Eastern red columbine) has been blooming in my garden since April 9. This is about the same time we noticed the spring’s first hummingbird visitor.
Recently I was reading on the black bench facing the meditation circle when a hummingbird came near. From my ring-side seat I watched it sip from one, two, three, four of the nodding red and yellow flowers.
In an instant the tiny bird was on its way, but the moment lingers still.
Aquilegia canadensis (Eastern red columbine) and Tradescantia (Spiderwort)
pbmGarden 
Thank you for sharing such a special moment Susie andthe image is delightful.
Thanks Christina. This image started out as a Wordless Wednesday post but then I remembered seeing the hummingbird.
As we don’t have humming birds in Europe they seem so very exotic and special.
Everyone I know here also views them as exotic and special. They are delightful.
What a wonderful experience, the sort of magical moment that stays with you forever!
It certainly was wonderful Pauline. I need to spend a few more minutes like that more often, just relaxing in the garden. Who knows what I might see.
How wonderful to have humming birds in your garden, and what a gorgeous Aquilegia. We should all take more time to sit and enjoy are gardens.
We used to hang hummingbird feeders years ago but since moving here I just let the flowers do the work. A big stand of Monarda is about to flower–that should keep the hummingbirds happy for a bit. It’s hard for gardeners to sit very long without seeing something that needs doing.
Beautiful! Like some exotic bird – I love columbines big time 🙂
Hi Annette, yes, columbine are cool. I have only this one native kind and would like to add some other colors sometime.
Such a beauty! Since I don’t have many blooms in my shady garden, I’ve recently added a hummingbird feeder. It’s nice to see the tiny birds come and go, but they dart around so fast I can’t keep my eye on them.
They’re amazingly fast aren’t they? They make that distinctive sound when they come to the feeder–can hear them before you see them.
This is a wonderful moment to recall, we do not have Hummingbirds here in the UK, they must be a fabulous sight even as quick as they are and I really like your Aquilegia too, it looks lovely en masse.
Thanks Julie. Sorry for the late reply. Your comment ended up marked as spam for some odd reason. I never tire of seeing the hummingbirds. I adore the columbine, but now it is well past time to trim it back. It spreads around the garden so easily. susie
How lovely to have seen that and simply enjoyed the moment. 😀 Those flowers are gorgeous… I finally found one for my own garden which will be featured in my next post!
It sounds magical to be so close to a hummingbird. The closest we have here in the UK is the hummingbird moth, which is surprisingly similar – you have to take a careful look to realise that it is an insect and not a small bird escaped from the zoo.
Just found your comment in my spam Julie. Not sure what happened there, but thanks for your comment. The whir of the wings is easy to recognize and they are magical little creatures. Occasionally I have seen hummingbird moths around my lantana. Those are very cool. Susie
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Cathy, thanks for linking to my post. What a wonderful day you had selecting new plants–your excitement is palpable and makes me want to head to garden centers right away. Hope you’ll enjoy Aquilegia canadensis. Epimedium is something I would like to try growing. You made a lot a nice purchases–it will be fun to see them grow up. susie
I look forward to seeing all mine blooming…yours are amazing.
The native columbine are a huge favorite of mine. The more the merrier!
Those look great! For some reason I’ve always looked down on the native columbines but I think you’ve changed my mind! I came across a few out of bloom in the woods, and I think I’ll try and swing by the spot this summer and see if I can find a few ripe seeds… come to think of it I should swing by there next week or so to see if they’re in bloom yet.
I enjoy them but they seed so easily they have spread themselves all around the garden. Put them where you won’t mind.