If you’re searching for hummingbird nectar recipes, I’m sorry to say, you won’t find many hummingbird nectar recipes to choose from.
Here you will find “the hummingbird nectar recipes.” It’s a simple recipe containing only white granulated table sugar and water, in a 4 part water to 1 part sugar ratio. That’s it, there’s nothing more to it!
Don’t add anything else to it or make any kind of substitutions of any kind. Other people have tried different additives such as brown sugar or honey, or sugar substitutes, or adding red food coloring. These will all cause problems and should be avoided.
Honey will ferment too quickly and cause a fungus that will harm your hummingbirds. Sugar substitutes have no calories and will starve the hummingbirds, that are needing high calorie nectar for energy. Red food coloring isn’t needed to attract hummingbirds if you use a red feeder. Some people even say the food coloring is harmful to hummingbirds, so don’t use it.
Just good old granulated white table sugar and water is all you need.
How to make hummingbird nectar
- Pour the water and sugar into a pan on your stove top and heat to boiling. Stir the hummingbird nectar while boiling , to dissolve the sugar.
- Boil for about 2 minutes then remove from the heat.
- Let the homemade hummingbird food cool before adding to your hummingbird feeder.
If you make more than you need to use at one time, you can store the excess hummingbird nectar in the frig for up to 2 weeks.
It’s good to make a larger batch of nectar and have some left over, because you will be changing the nectar now and then to make sure the nectar in your feeder is always fresh. Hummingbirds won’t come to a feeder that doesn’t contain fresh nectar.
Below is a chart that will tell you how often to change the hummingbird nectar recipes, so that you can be sure it is always fresh nectar that you have in your hummingbird feeder. How often you have to change the nectar will be determined by how high the outside temperature reaches. The cooler the temperature, the longer your hummingbird food will last before fermenting.
When to Change Hummingbird Nectar Temperature Chart
High temperatures…………Change nectar after
71-75……………………………6 days
76-80……………………………5 days
81-84……………………………4 days
85-88……………………………3 days
89-92……………………………2 days
93+………………………………change daily
If your hummingbird nectar recipes ferment before you get them changed, mold can start to grow in the nectar and on your feeder also. So try to change the nectar according to the time table in the chart. Once the nectar begins to look cloudy, it is time to change it.
How to clean your feeder
Each time you change the nectar, you will also need to rinse it out thoroughly with hot water to help keep your feeder clean.
If your feeder does become moldy, you will have to soak the feeder in bleach water to kill the mold and to sanitize the feeder.
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You may also need to brush the feeder with special brushes to remove the dead mold. They come in shapes and sizes especially suited to get into all the little nooks and crannies where mold might be hiding. |
You can make your feeder cleaning a lot easier if you first start with a feeder that’s easy to take apart and clean. Here is the perfect hummingbird feeder you should have.
My favorite feeder that’s easy to clean
Aspects 12oz Hummzinger Ultra With Nectar Guard
It’s inexpensive and has several features that makes it well worth the price.
The HummZinger has patented Nectar guard tips which are flexible membranes attached to the feed ports that prohibit entry from flying insects, but allow Hummingbirds to feed as usual. The HummZinger also has a built in ant moat that will stop crawling insects from getting to the nectar. It also has raised flower ports that divert rain.
This mid-size nectar feeder has a 12 oz. capacity and can be hung or post mounted with hardware provided. It has four feeding ports for hummingbirds and is made of unbreakable polycarbonate. Easy to clean.
For ease of cleaning and protection from bees, wasps and ants, this feeder can’t be beat.
How to keep insects out of feeders that don’t have an ant moat
If you already have a hummingbird feeder, and you want to protect it from ants and other crawling insects, the ant moat below will do the job.
Trap-It Ant Moat for Hummingbird Feeders
The first and still the best to protect your Hummingbird and Oriole feeder from ants and other crawling insects. Insert between hanger and feeder and fill with water, providing a barrier to crawling pests. Red color to attract hummingbirds.
Now you know how to mix hummingbird nectar recipes, when to change you nectar and how to clean your feeder. All that’s left is hanging it in your yard and waiting for the hummingbirds to find it, which shouldn’t take long.
Enjoy your hummingbirds and I hope you enjoyed this article on hummingbird nectar recipes.
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