Homemade Hummingbird Food and My Favorite Nectar Feeder

This time of year the bird food section of stores includes packets of pre-mixed bright red nectar and nectar powder mix for hummingbirds.  When I first started feeding hummingbirds, I actually bought this stuff (sad, but true).  If you like to feed hummingbirds, save yourself some money and skip the red food dye, and mix up some homemade hummingbird food.  It couldn’t be simpler.  Also, I’d like to recommend my favorite hummingbird feeder to date, and some tips for keeping your hummers healthy.

Homemade Hummingbird Food – DIY Hummingbird Nectar Recipe

Ingredients:

Maintain a 1:4 sugar to water ratio.

For instance:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup water

Directions:

Use clean, unchlorinated tap water.  Heat to boiling (to kill any bacteria).  Stir in sugar until dissolved.  Allow to cool to room temp before placing in feeder.  Refrigerate any unused portion for up to a week.

Change your nectar at least every three days, especially in warm weather.

Watch out for mold growth or fermentation.  Any off smell or off color or cloudiness is a bad sign.  Clean the feeder thoroughly and clean and refill more frequently.  Contaminated food can make the hummingbirds sick.  Use non-toxic dish soap or a vinegar water solution and rinse well.

Wash your feeder every time you fill it.

The article “What Do Hummingbirds Eat?” by BirdWatcher’s Digest also suggests that hummingbirds enjoy real maple syrup and tree sap, plus they eat many small bugs.  Honey is not recommended because it may contain live bacteria.

A Hummingbird Feeder That You Can Easily Clean

One thing I’ve noticed about most hummingbird nectar feeders is that they are terribly hard to clean.  Even a good bottle brush has a hard time getting into curves and tight corners.  Many references advise using a bleach water rinse to kill any bacteria, but it’s tough to guarantee the effectiveness of this and also to make sure the bleach is completely rinsed out.  After looking in vain for an easy clean feeder option at the local hardware stores, I finally came across the Hummzinger Mini at a specialty wild bird shop.

This feeder is composed of a hanger and two pieces shaped roughly like hollow doughnut halves.  The two halves clamp and unclamp like a plastic Easter egg, leaving the center of each wide open for easy cleaning.  In the center of the reservoir, there’s a separate reservoir that can be filled with water to deter ants.  (If you have really bad ant problems, grease the hanger as well.)

While marketed as a hummingbird feeder, I have had orioles come and perch and use the feeder as well.  They also have a Hummzinger Ultra, which holds 12 ounces, for those who have a larger hummingbird population.  (The Hummzinger Mini holds 8 ounces.)

Enjoy these little beauties while you can.  For those of us in the north, winter will be here again all too soon.

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