Just curious. I see very few here, but they have a varied appetite. So far I have watched them 'grazing' on bee balm, brazilian verbena, coleus flowers, false dragonhead, cannas, honeysuckle, pennstemon, hosta, and jewelweed. I'm sure they are taking advantage of the rest of the flowers in my yard, but I don't catch them very often.
What are yours munching on?
Naturpatch
What do your hummers like to eat?
they love my salvias and mandevillas. Have seen them trying to get in the brugs, but haven't seen one make it yet.
oh and the cestrums
Adult hummers are very selective in the plants they feed on for nectar, only those with high nectar, monarda, penstemons, salvias, mimosa, jewelweed(spotted), cardinal flower, mimulus, campsis, varies according to what native plants are in a given area. Hatching yr hummers will feed off of all most any plant until it learns which plants produce the most necture and insects. Hummers visit a lot of different plants, some for nectar, some for insects, some for nesting material. Insects make up a large percent of their diet. Some favorite insect plants include, roses, sunflowers, lantana, hibiscus. If you want more hummers, you will have to put out feeders. It takes a hummer visiting 2 to 3 thousand flowers to get enough nectar for one day.
Feeders may work by you, but up here they still seem to prefer the flowers. I think they have the neighborhood all mapped out. I normally never see more than one at a time. Saw two for the first time ever yesterday. Must mean they're migrating. I've seen them massing at feeders in the west, south, and the southwest, but not here. You'd think they'd like my yard...it's chock full of bugs!
All Ruby Throats are moving South at the moment.The birds that you have this week won't be the same birds next week.
They are migrating quickly and like hummer_nut said,the older,wizer birds know where to get the most food for the energy spent.
They are using Cardinal Vine,Mandevilla , morning glories and the feeders here at my house.I still have between 2 and 6 every day.Mine are gone for the most part by the 15th...I've seen a few stragglers over the years as late as the 22nd,but I only keep one feeder after the 15th.
Bob Sargent suggests that you keep a feeder up,filled,clean and unfrozen all winter just in case a few species other than Ruby Throats are over wintering in your area(east of the MS River)I've never done so,but it sounds interesting to think about.
A year around food supply for our hummers is our Abutilon hybridum. It is rather large and has probably fifty flowers on it at all times. At most times, you will find a hummer snacking.
Besides the plants mentioned above, they love columbine, weigelia flowers. phlox, butterfly bush, Rose of Sharon and heucheras in my yard. I used to rely entirely on flowers to attract them, then I read that they arrive here in April when not much is blooming, and they get very hungry and cold on rainy days too, because the flowers close up and they can't get nectar. I have feeders with perches so they can rest their little wings for a while. This year I noticed an aggressive male Ruby Throat claimed the feeder, and the flowers, for his own by chasing all the other hummers off everytime they tried to eat!
Give your hummers a treat with a "bug salad." Only half their intake is nectar, the other half being bugs. I put rotten fruit, or rather cut fruit/food to rot, in an open wire basket (lined with foil for easy removal) and hang it off in the distance from the house. Yum!
I have alot of plants in my garden that attract the hummers. Their favorite by far, in my yard is the firebush. They cant leave it alone. They spend a considerable time daily buzzing this bush. What I like about the bush is the fact it is drought and heat tolerant. Once it starts blooming, it continues well into fall. In fact, at this time, it is still blooming. Bugs dont bother it. It does die down each year for me, but comes back each spring. For me, it grows to be about 3 feet tall.
Rylaff, I have put the fire bush on my want list, thank you! Sounds like a promising hummer meal.