Visiting hummingbirds is one of the biggest garden joys. The sound of their wings, the speed of their movements, the sparkling of their wings – this all makes them a very attractive garden guest. Invite into your garden with this hummingbird food recipe.
A month after my mother passed away, a hummingbird came to me while I was in the yard. She approached my face and flapped her wings into place, looking directly at my eyes. She was probably a foot away from me and stayed there for over a minute.
I was frozen. She looked at me and felt like she was trying to say something to me. Or maybe she was watching me like we, humans, were looking at animals in their natural habitats.
I said hello and looked at her for a while before she left for the tree. Some people say my mother might come to check on me. She certainly loved Hummingbirds and ate them all year round. She would have been pleased to have taken the form of a hummingbird.
Perhaps this sweet little creature was checking out me and probably asked me to clean my feeder!
Today’s Hummingbird Food recipe comes from my book Garden Alchemy. It is one of over 80 recipes in your garden, including recipes for soil, fertilizer, compost, and more projects to encourage backyard wildlife. Find books in your country and grow organically!
I’ll cover this post…
Anna’s Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are all around my city, Vancouver. In fact, Anna’s hummingbird is the official bird of the city. They have emerald wings and rose throats, showing their beauty in fleeting moments in my feeder. Their home is very small and you may find them in your potted plants.
Hummingbirds in the snow may not be such a rare sight these days. Climate change has significantly changed the movement patterns of Anna’s hummingbirds. Many are currently in Vancouver for the winter.
Unfortunately, this means that birds are difficult to find food for winter. This has led to many people who provide hummingbird feeders all year round, including winter feeding. Without flowers and nectar, feeders are the only food source.
Food ratio of water and sugar hummingbirds
Is it okay to supply hummingbird sugar water? absolutely! Sugar water is the best and cheapest way to feed hummingbirds in your garden. If there are not enough flowers in the area, it serves as an additional source of nectar.
The ideal sugar/water ratio is 1-4. Mix 4 cups of water for each bowl of sugar you want to add. By refrigerating leftovers for up to a week, you can make as large a batch as you like.
It is also important to hear about sugar alternatives that are suitable for human consumption, but regular white sugar is perfect for hummingbird foods. Do not replace with maple syrup, honey, brown sugar, coconut sugar, stevia or other sugar substitutes.
Hummingbird Food Recipes
Hummingbirds are beautiful and the joy you can see through your garden or window. If you don’t have enough reason to love them, they also fill their belly with aphids, mosquitoes, batsmen, white, insect eggs. Invite them for a sweet cocktail. That way you will be willing to reward them with pest control and stupid attitude. Here’s how to make hummingbird food!
material
1 part sugar 4 parts water
make!
Bring the sugar and water together in a pot. Allow the mixture to cool completely before placing it in the feeder. Place unused hummingbird food in the fridge for up to a week.
Change nectars, clean the feeder once a week when it’s cool, and get it hot 2-3 times a week.
Frequently Asked Questions about Hummingbird Food
Frequent cleaning of hummingbird feeders is essential as a responsible birder. If you don’t clean the feeder, you can make the bird sick.
If it’s hot outside, clean the feeder 2-3 times a week. When it’s cold outside, it works fine once a week. For thirsty hummingbirds, if you finish the feeder before the week is up, clean it every time it’s empty.
As for how you clean it, there is a good soak in all the warm water you need. Dishwash soap can leave residue in feeders that can be harmful to hummingbirds.
yes. Ideally, it is recommended to use spring water, but tap water will function properly. Do not use distilled water in hummingbird food recipes.
Ideally, place the feeder four feet above the ground in the shade. Shade helps to prevent the water from rotting faster and gives hummingbirds a break from the hot afternoon sun. Place the feeders near other plantings so they can quickly go to hidden spaces, as they don’t want to be opened for too long.
Do not dye the water red. It’s no no because it can harm the birds. The hummingbirds need the red to attract them, but the little I have on my feeder is enough. I started with a red plastic feeder, but they found out I would serve nectar for them. When food runs out, the hummingbirds let me know. They hang out at the window outside my office until they make a fuss about me in the yard or put my butt out with new nectar.
Hummingbirds move for genetic programming. So don’t be afraid that the feeder will persuade them to be too long or return too early. Place the feeder about a week before you plan to return to spring and summer. This time it depends on where you are, so check with your local bird club for the exact date.
Leave your feeder as long as the birds are there and drink from there. Like Vancouver, hummingbirds may stay longer than usual in the fall. Maintaining feeders can help these late immigrants or winter residents. Always clean the feeder once a week, even if hummingbird food is not used.
What are the best flowers to attract hummingbirds?
Hummingbirds stop to feed every 15 minutes! As you can imagine, they fly all day from flowers to flowers. When choosing flowers to attract hummingbirds, aim for long blooming times and brightly colored flowers. Red flowers are the most popular.
Some flowers they love are:
honeysuckle bee balm fuchsia firebush hollyhock petunias columbine cardinal cardinal salvia lupine zinnia
Hummingbird feeder
When searching for a hummingbird feeder, the first thing you want to look for is the one with Alimut. This allows hummingbird food to prevent pools and drops and attract ants.
As mentioned earlier, putting red on the feeder can help attract hummingbirds. You’ll also want to make sure that it’s not too big for your local population, taking into account the size. Otherwise, it’s time to waste food when it’s unused and clean it.
Here are some great options:
You know how to feed these lovely creatures, and you’ll be rewarded with their beauty each month. Have fun with them!
More ways to help pollinators
Hummingbird food
Attract the hummingbirds into your garden with this sweet, simple nectar cocktail.
Bring the sugar and water together in a pot and let cool.
Fill the feeder with nectar and clean it every 2-3 days in warm climates.
Store the remaining nectar in the fridge for a week.
With a city girl who learned to garden, it changed everything. Author, artist, master gardener. A better life through plants.
