U.S. Postal Service Issues Garden Delights

Stamps Celebrate Hummingbirds' Vital Role in Spring and Summer Gardens

STRONGSVILLE, Ohio, March 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Postal Service has issued Garden Delights, four stamps celebrating the flora of America's spring and summer gardens and the vital role of hummingbirds in their pollination. Each stamp showcases a female ruby-throated hummingbird hovering next to either a zinnia, cigar flower, spotted touch-me-not or sunflower. A dedication for the stamps was held today in Strongsville.

The bloom of spring flowers is a source of delight for gardeners and non-gardeners alike, particularly after the chill of a long winter. While gardens provide joy, sustenance, and a sense of purpose to those who tend them, they also give birds, plants and animals a refuge and the resources they need to survive.

No garden would be complete without the buzzes, hums and musical melodies of nature's visiting wildlife. Hummingbirds, in particular, bring joy to summer gardens with their unusual features and petite size.

Hummingbirds are found only in the Americas, with about 16 different species native to the United States. Ruby-throated hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris) are among the smallest — about the weight of a penny and 3.5 inches long. They are the only hummingbirds found in the gardens of the eastern and central parts of the United States.

Unique among birds, these tiny, aerodynamic marvels are remarkable pollinators. More than 7,000 flowering plants rely on hummingbirds to collect and deliver the pollen needed to produce fruit and seeds.

Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, designed the stamps using existing photographs by wildlife photographer Ben King.

Garden Delights stamps come in booklets of 20 and are Forever stamps, meaning they will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1‑ounce price.

Postal Products

Customers may purchase stamps and other philatelic products through the Postal Store at usps.com/shopstamps, by calling 844-737-7826, by mail through USA Philatelic or at Post Office locations nationwide. For officially licensed stamp products, shop the USPS Officially Licensed Collection on Amazon.

Please Note: The United States Postal Service is an independent federal establishment, mandated to be self-financing and to serve every American community through the affordable, reliable and secure delivery of mail and packages to 167 million addresses six and often seven days a week. Overseen by a bipartisan Board of Governors, the Postal Service is implementing a 10-year transformation plan, Delivering for America, to modernize the postal network, restore long-term financial sustainability, dramatically improve service across all mail and shipping categories, and maintain the organization as one of America's most valued and trusted brands.

The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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Contact: Leisha Palmore-Drummond
[email protected]
usps.com/news

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SOURCE U.S. Postal Service