As much as I enjoy sitting under the shady tree in my tiny suburban backyard and sipping a drink or hosting a barbecue for friends and family, my most critical and sought-after visitors aren't people. They are the small creatures that dart about the tree's limbs, drink from my humble waterfall or, in the case of a few frogs and a turtle, dip beneath the waters of my tiny pond.
I can think of no greater sign of landscaping success than to play host to Mother Nature and I relish every buzzing, chirping and croaking she brings to my little yard. It is a chorus of approval, subtle over the sound of traffic that surrounds me, yet awesome in its ability to allow me to forget just how close I live to the hustle and bustle of a city. But the sound I relish the most, the one I try to entice to my minuscule little paradise year after year, is the buzzing hum of hummingbird wings.
To lure these elusive little gems to my yard required patience, timing and a little bit of research. With the exception of southern and western states, most places in the US enjoy only transitory visitors; migrants on the way to and from breeding grounds during the Spring and Fall. Knowing when they'll be traveling through your neck of the woods goes a long way to keeping them around longer or to inviting them to consider your yard as an ideal place to build a tiny nest!
Another helpful element is a garden which showcases flowering plants, shrubs and vines of fairly specific types. Hummingbirds have a preference for nectar that is particularly sweet and will bypass flowers that don't offer up candy at about 25% sugar content.
There is a broad selection of artificial feeders available to entice these diminutive visitors to your yard. The most commonly available and modestly priced consist of a glass reservoir and red plastic feeding ports (often with yellow accent). These models work quite well but, in my personal opinion, lack in aesthetics what they make up for in savings.
At the other end of the spectrum are your high-end (and high priced) hand blown glass models. These items are exceedingly attractive and, if not overdone, can add a touch of elegance to any garden. My personal favorites rest at the end of stems which can be neatly "planted" to look a little bit like big glass flowers. I recently bought a pair of these for about $25 each.
My most expensive feeder ran me about $70 and is an exquisite glass globe. The feeding port sports a red glass "flower" with a glass stem on which a hummingbird could perch to feed were it so inclined. For all its beauty, the price really was an extravagance and I'm worried sick about breaking the thing every time I replace the water (which is often).
Whatever feeder you elect to purchase, what's really important isn't the look or style but what you put in it. As stated earlier, hummingbirds are particular feeders and favor a fairly specific sugar content. Though there are commercial mixes available, you can give a hummingbird everything it needs to fuel up with just some ordinary table sugar and water.
When mixing your own nectar, use only cane sugar. Add 1/4th cup of sugar for every one cup of water. Boil the mixture until the sugar fully incorporates, let it cool and then add it to your hummingbird feeder. If you want to put out a hummingbird feeding station early or late in the migration season, consider a richer 1/3rd mix (one cup sugar to every 3 cups water). Hummingbirds expend substantial energy during migration and the richer mix will help offset the scarcity of natural sources of nectar early and late in the season.
Replace the water in your hummingbird feeder every 3-4 days or sooner if it appears cloudy. Clean the feeder well when you perform a water change. Only use cane sugar and never use artificial coloring. Do not use "raw" sugar. Despite being natural, it contains iron which is harmful to the birds. Never use honey as a sweetener as it can lead to bacterial infections in your hummers.
NEVER use artificial sweeteners in your hummingbird feeder. Hummingbirds do not eat nectar for sustenance. The nectar from flowers, or from your hummingbird feeder, serves as fuel to allow a hummingbird to hunt for its real food which, as with many birds, consists of insects and spiders! It needs the energy from your feeder to power its insanely demanding metabolism. Putting a hummingbird on a diet is more likely to kill it as it won't have the energy to hunt for food and, believe it or not, a hummingbird is only hours away from starvation at any time!
So there you have it, a quick introduction to the attraction, feeding and enjoyment of hummingbirds. Do yourself and Mother Nature a favor and setup a feeding station for these amazing creatures today. May your gardens be full of them and other creatures sure to enrich your lives.
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