Landscaping and Gardening Info

One of the most interesting birds around is the hummingbird. There is just nothing else like watching the tiny creature zip around your yard and find hummingbird food. The little bird can zip across the yard, buzz your ear and fly away before you can even spot it! Keeping a regular hummingbird visitor in your yard is fun and easy to do, just provide a little hummingbird food.

Adding natural sources of hummingbird food to your yard is the best way to attract hummingbirds. Add a few hummingbird feeders to your garden and you can have hummingbirds near your home from spring until fall. Natural sources of hummer food are really easy to set up and maintain. These plants not only attract hummingbirds but they will also make your yard more attractive. Most flowers that attract hummers are red and very attractive.

Natural Foods for Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds sip nectar from flowers. They are attracted to red flowers like coral bells, red bee balm, scarlet salvia and cardinal flower. Once planted maintenance is fairly easy. If you choose perennials they will come back year after year creating a natural food source for feeding hummingbirds for years to come. Hummingbirds also eat small flying insects.

“Artificial” Hummingbird Nectar

You don’t need a large yard to attract hummingbirds, in fact you don’t need a yard at all. Whether you live in a condo, an apartment or in the city you can attract hummingbirds. Hanging flower baskets will attract hummingbirds and they don’t require a lot of space. You can also use hummingbird feeders in small spaces. They are available in many sizes and shapes. You can hang them from windowsills, under your eaves or even attach them to a window.

When using hummingbird feeders look for ones that have red coloring on them. Hummingbirds are attracted to the color red. Hummingbird feeders come in many shapes and sizes but that is more a personal preference. The hummingbirds only care about the nectar inside.

Hummingbird Bird Feeders

There are two styles of hummingbird feeders - dish and bottle. The bottle style feeder is typically an upside down plastic or glass bottle with a feeding tube coming out the bottom. The end of the feeding tube often has a plastic red flower to attract hummingbirds. Some also include bee-guards to keep flying insects off the feeding port. You should hang your bottle feeder in the shade when possible. If the sugar solution heats up it expands. This expansion may cause the feeder to leak from the feeding port.

When shopping for dish style hummingbird feeders you will find some made out of plastic. The other style is made from blown glass. These feeders are beautiful pieces of art that will add a touch of class to your bird feeding station. Plastic dish feeders consist of a dish to hold the nectar and a cover with multiple feeding ports. The feeding ports are usually shaped like flowers to attract hummingbirds. The topside feeding ports are not appealing to flying insects, as they cannot reach the nectar inside. I have tried both styles of hummingbird feeders and I think the dish style works the best.

Hummingbird Food Recipe

Making your own hummingbird nectar is easy. The only thing you need to remember is four parts water, one part sugar. You can make as much as you need just follow the 4 to 1 formula. Some people say that a stronger ratio of 4 parts water and 2 parts sugar will attract hummingbirds faster to a new hummingbird feeder location.

The nectar mixture does not need to be boiled but boiling it will help blend the mixture. After boiling make sure the nectar cools completely before serving. There is no need to add red food dye to the mixture. If you have trouble attracting hummingbirds try tying red strips of cloth to your feeder. The red color will attract hummers fast. If you make more than you can use at one time store any excess hummingbird food in your refrigerator. It should keep for up to two weeks if kept cold.

Hummingbirds will visit your hummingbird feeders into the fall. Many of the hummers you see at your feeders in the fall are migrating from locations farther north. The nourishment they receive from your feeders will provide the energy needed for the long flight to their winter home.

Attracting hummingbirds gets easier each year. Studies have shown the hummers return to reliable food sources year after year.

Tags: gardening, garden