Anyone Can Enjoy Feeding Hummingbirds!
When you decide that feeding hummingbirds is something that you would like to try, there are a couple of things you should want to do. First of all you have to have a hummingbird feeder. You’ll be able to buy one or perhaps build your very own home made hummingbird feeder.
Many individuals take pleasure in feeding hummingbirds inside their backyards. Hummingbirds are amazing to observe and hummingbird feeding is really a gratifying hobby for the old and young alike. Hummingbirds normally nourish themselves on nectar which is simple to duplicate, home-made nectar is ideal for bringing in these tiny birds. Here are some instructions on making food for feeding hummingbirds:
Food Instructions For Feeding Hummingbirds:
1. to make hummingbird food, white sugar and water are mixed together at a ratio of one part sugar to four parts water
2. next, bring this hummingbird feed mixture to a boil while stirring the mixture to dissolve all the sugar
3. boil the hummingbird food for about two minutes then let the homemade hummingbird food cool before adding to the hummingbird feeder.
Boiling the hummingbird feeder solution will get rid of any chlorine that might be in the water and kill any impurities that might be in the sugar. This boiling process will allow your hummingbird nectar to last longer before it starts to ferment.
This four to one ratio of water to sugar will produce a hummingbird feeding mixture that is about twenty percent sugar just like the flower nectar hummingbirds naturally feed on.
If you have any of your homemade hummingbird nectar leftover, it can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
There are some joys that you can take pleasure in for low cost and birding and feeding hummingbirds is certainly one such enjoyment. Observing hummingbirds is really a clear pleasure. These gorgeous wild birds can be found in beautiful jewel-toned colors and they appear to hover in mid air while they drink nectar out of your backyard garden flowers.
Now that you have the nectar for feeding hummingbirds, now you will need a hummingbird feeder. There are numerous kinds of feeders available for feeding hummingbirds. The vast majority of them are going to have some red colorization to them. For the reason that hummingbirds are drawn to the color red. However if you think that there’s not enough red on your hummingbird feeder then you could fasten a red-colored ribbon around the bird feeder. Red on your feeder or on a ribbon is enough red, to attract hummingbirds. You don’t need to add any red food coloring to the nectar itself. Some say this red coloring is harmful to the hummingbirds, so there’s no need to take a chance.
In addition to the red colorization, hummingbirds enjoy having nectar from various flowers, shrubbery, vines and trees. By putting your bird feeder among the back garden flowers, you’ll have the dual enjoyment of feeding hummingbirds even though there aren’t any flowers blossoming within your backyard garden.
Now despite the fact that hummingbirds adore the color of red they are going to visit your backyard garden if their preferred plants and flowers are there. Having the right flowers in a garden, is a must to be as successful as possible at feeding hummingbirds. Blooming plants like Columbine, Begonias and Holly Hocks, as well as Fuchsias, Coral Bells and Lantana are a few of these. Impatiens, Penstemen, and Petunias along with Geraniums and Flowering Tobacco are also some more favorites that hummingbirds like to feed on.
They also enjoy Azaleas, Flowering Quince, Honeysuckle, Weigela and also the Butterfly Bush. Flowering vines like Morning Glory, Trumpet Creeper and Trumpet Honeysuckle will also attract lots of feeding hummingbirds.
As hummingbirds are extremely territorial birds you’ll have to place other feeders where the hummingbirds won’t see their competition. Should you position the bird feeders close to one another the hummingbirds will fight each other; occasionally to the death in order to guard their favorite flowering plants and feeder.
The very best time to position your hummingbird feeder is around Five to ten days prior to the time the hummingbird season begins. This way should any passing migratory hummingbirds view the bird feeder they will often stop by your backyard. There might be the opportunity of your feeding hummingbirds from another country even. Here is a link that will be helpful in determining when you should put out a feeder. When to start feeding hummingbirds.
The season for hummingbirds starts once the weather conditions starts turning warmer, for that reason it’s best that you understand their traveling times. By doing this you’ll attract hummingbirds to your backyard garden even when there aren’t any great smelling flowers blooming.
Once you’ve started feeding hummingbirds you’ll be amazed at how many hummingbirds will come to your garden and just how colorful and exciting your garden will suddenly become.
To keep the hummingbird nectar fresh you’ll have to change it before the sugar in the homemade hummingbird food starts to ferment.
The outside temperature will determine how long your hummingbird food will last before the sugar starts to ferment. Here is a chart that gives an idea of how long your hummingbird food should last, for feeding hummingbirds, based on the outside air temperature.
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
Should you forget to change the hummingbird feed on a timely basis and mold appears, you’ll have to give your hummingbird feeder a thorough cleaning. For feeding hummingbirds, a clean feeder is a must!
You will need to mix a 10% bleach and 90% water solution to soak your feeder in to kill the mold and sterilize your feeder. Soak your feeder for an hour. You may need to use small hummingbird feeder brushes to brush the dead mold off of the inside of your feeder and out of the feeder ports, to thoroughly clean it.
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You may also need to brush the feeder with special hummingbird feeder 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. For feeding hummingbirds, you can’t allow mold to be in your feeder. |
Once your feeder is clean, remove all the bleach water by rinsing it in running water several times.
There are feeders that you can buy that will make the task of cleaning a feeder a lot easier. Try to find a feeder that is easy to take apart and allows you to get inside the feeder to all those hard to reach areas that will need cleaning.
My favorite choice of hummingbird feeders to use with the homemade hummingbird feed recipe, for feeding hummingbirds, is
Aspects 12oz Hummzinger Ultra With Nectar Guard
It’s inexpnsive 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 for feeding hummingbirds.
Trap-It Ant Moat for Hummingbird Feeders, Red
If you don’t have a feeder with an ant moat built-in, you can get an add on ant moat like this one that is great for feeding hummingbirds, to hang your feeder from.
Good luck with your hummingbirds and I hope you enjoyed this article on feeding hummingbirds
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