If you're deadheading perennials in June, it pays to be selective. While removing spent blooms can encourage repeat flowering, some nectar-rich plants are far more valuable left intact, providing a vital food source for hummingbirds as they prepare for their long migration south later in summer.
Take salvias, for example. A mature clump can produce dozens of flowering stems, each covered in nectar-rich tubular blooms. By mid to late summer, many of those flowers may look past their best, but they're still feeding wildlife. Cut every stem back, and any regrowth is likely to be limited, leaving far fewer flowers available in August and September when migrating hummingbirds need them most.
