Making a Hummingbird Friendly Garden

Hummingbird

Hummingbirds are found all through the Americas including the Caribbean. Famous for their ability to hover and their unique ability to fly backwards, hummingbirds hover by continuously flapping their wings up to 85 times a second.

The smallest bird in the world is the Bee Hummingbird at only 2 inches long and around 1.8 grams. The largest hummingbird is the Giant Hummingbird at 24 grams and approximately 8 inches long. Hummingbirds have the fastest metabolism of any birds and to sustain this they need to consume more than their own weight in food every day. So that they can do this they have to visit hundreds blooms every day to gather the nectar. They possess long bills and tongues which allows them to reach right into the blooms. They are able to slow down their metabolisms when at rest, in contrast to the majority of other high metabolism animals. This lengthens their lifespan, which may be up to 17 years.

Making A Garden Friendly to the Hummingbirds

To draw hummingbirds to your garden you could plant brightly colored shrubs and flowers. Hummingbirds have very little sense of smell but they are drawn to bright colours. Placing a hummingbird feeder in your garden or on your patio will attract these beautiful birds. Some annuals to plant include jacobinia, salvia, beard tongue, jewelweed, impatiens and petunia. Some perennial plants include foxglove, hosta, hummingbird mint, lupine, yucca, cardinal flower, bee balm, canna and columbine. For bushes and trees plant buddleia, lantana, tree tobacco, mimosa, flame acanthus and azalea.

Don’t use any insecticides in your garden as this will destroy bugs and insects that hummingbirds eat. They will also leave residues on the flowers which the hummingbirds may consume. Also provide plenty of places to rest as hummingbirds will spend in the region of 80% of the time sitting on branches, twigs etc. Make available plants that will supply materials for nesting to attract the females. Hummingbirds have a preference for soft nesting material from trees such as eucalyptus and willow and from lichens and ferns.

Hanging up brilliantly coloured, hummingbird feeders in your garden will attract the hummingbirds. An excellent idea is to fasten red streamers that move in the wind around the feeder. It’s also a great idea to supply feeders at different heights as hummingbird species all have different preferences. Species that prefer low growing plants will visit a feeder located lower while species that feed on taller plants and shrubs will choose to go to a feeder positioned in a higher position. Hummingbirds are also extremely territorial and a single hummingbird may perhaps defend a single feeder and prevent others from approaching. Put at least three feeders at assorted heights all around your garden.

Hummingbirds love to bathe in the mist on foliage so you could put a mister close to some broadleaved shrubbery to provide them with a place to bathe.

How to Make Hummingbird Nectar

Make a sweet nectar by blending together one cup of sugar and four cups of water that has been boiled. Cool and store in the refrigerator. Excess nectar can be stored safely for approximately a week. Thoroughly wash hummingbird feeders once a week by rinsing with a solution of 1 cup of vinegar in four cups of water and then rinsing with plain water. Re-fill with the nectar solution and suspend in the shade. Do not use any sweeteners or food coloring. Also do not use honey as it can ferment and be the source of a a poisonous fungus. Swap the nectar solution in the feeder every three days or more often when the weather is hotter.

In Conclusion

It’s not hard to make a garden that will appeal to these pretty birds. Give them the food they love and a comfortable environment and hummingbirds will come to your garden often.

See more garden craft ideas at Easy Craft Ideas