Chicken Coop Chatter©
Today I cleaned up the Hummingbird feeder and made a fresh batch of nectar for the resident Hummers. If you've never made your own nectar, try the recipe below. Homemade nectar is very near to the nectar the birds would find from blooming flowers. Making your own nectar is inexpensive and uses what you already have available, without need to run to the garden shop for a prepared commercial nectar.
Just a note before providing the recipe. If you have well water, you need not do anything special. If you have city water, it may contain chlorine and fluoride. You will need to boil that water or leave it set overnight. You can use bottled water but there is no need, your tap water is fine if you simply follow the simple steps to dissipate any chlorine or fluoride.
When you have made your homemade nectar, let it cool before filling the hummingbird feeder. There is no need to fill the feeder completely full. You only need enough nectar in the feeder for the number of hummingbirds that visit. Monitor a few days to see how much nectar the birds are drinking. A cup of nectar to start is sufficient until you know how often you need to refill. Any extra nectar can be refrigerated and used for refilling the feeder. The Nectar can also be frozen in freezer bags or containers, and thawed to use at anytime, without altering the nutritional value.
NECTAR RECIPE:
All you need is Cane or Beet sugar and water. You do NOT need food coloring, or any additional sweeteners. Hummingbirds expend a lot of energy, and the carbohydrates digest easily. The simple syrup is the same that chefs use in cooking and the same syrup used for Sweet Tea and in Espresso drinks in a variety of ratios. The formula I use is:
1 part Sugar, 4 parts Water. Or 1 cup Sugar to 4 Cups of Water
Heat the water to boiling. Turn off the heat then add the sugar and stir until fully dissolved. Allow to cool, fill the clean Hummingbird feeder and hang on a sheltered tree limb or near flowers that you have seen hummingbirds frequent. Clean and refill the feeder at least weekly to prevent mold or algae from forming around the seal or within the nectar.
If you do not have a feeder, purchase one that does not allow ants and wasps to get into it and make sure it seals snuggly to prevent dripping. Since Hummingbirds are territorial, it is a good idea to provide more than one feeder a good distance apart to allow others to feed without competition.
Though we think of the color red as a preference to Hummingbirds, they visit all flowers, all colors that have a tubular shape for their long beak to enter. I have a Salmon color *Cape Fuchsia* that Hummingbirds love. They also love Honeysuckle and visit mine frequently though the flowers are not of the tubular shape and they are a pale cream color edged in salmon
Wherever you place your feeder be sure it is a sheltered area and that ants are not able to get to it. Enjoy your Hummingbirds and know that the nectar you make for them is the right balance of nutrients and helps them to thrive. Baltimore Orioles will also visit the hummingbird feeders, though they do look very silly hanging upside down to access a tubular access hole.
Though I enjoy providing feeders for the hummers, I also plant flowers that attract the tiny aerial acrobats. They will visit both the flowers and the feeders. Hanging your feeders near flowers they enjoy will also encourage them to visit your feeders. Just hanging a feeder is not what will attract the birds to your backyard. Having suitable flowers to attract their attention are also important. So we advise that you plant Bee and Hummingbird friendly flowers as part of your eco-friendly project. We do provide a link below for seeds and for feeders, though they should also be available at your local garden centers.
I have a family of Hummingbirds that nest annually, and we do have a resident Hummingbird that does not migrate in Winter. I have seen those around Christmas lights, looking for nectar. One additional thing. Hummingbirds will stay long past time to migrate if you do not pull your feeders indoors. This is detrimental to the migrating varieties. So be sure to remember no later than October to pull in the feeders so the Hummingbirds will migrate naturally.
During the natural migration, the hummingbirds travel from South to North and in warmer climates can arrive as early as February, where in our area of the Northwest, they are usually arriving around May or early June. Having your feeders clean and filled for their arrival will encourage the birds to nest where there is a fresh, ready source of nectar that they can rely upon.
Be sure to clean your feeders and refill every few days, especially in hot weather to prevent the growth of bacteria in the nectar that can be harmful to the hummingbird population.
When the babies hatch, it is amazing to watch them zip from one place to another, and you might notice a bit of an aerial battle at times. That is usually the females chasing off the males once breeding season is over. The hummingbirds may even get up close and personal while you are outside. They are curious little birds, but often times, they associate you to the nectar and will buzz you to let you know the feeder needs attention.
Some shrubs and plants that attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds are:
Weigela, Petunia, Trumpet Vine, Honey suckle, Gladiola, Azalea, Rhododendron, Morning Glory, Watsonia, Hanging Fuchsia, and Cape Fuchsia . There are a variety of colors to choose from, but the trumpet or bell shape of the flowers is of most interest to the hummingbirds.
Please refer to our links for appropriate flower seeds and Hummingbird feeders below.
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