Hi, (again) everybody!
Perhaps you have some opinions you will share--
I am getting ready to replace and add to my HB feeders and I would like to know:
(1) which feeder is your favorite (as far as filling, cleaning, hanging, durability, appearance),
and
(2) which feeder is the most popular with the birds?
Here's a page showing all kinds of feeders...
http://www.thebirdshed.com/humfeed.html?engine=adwords!1076&keyword=%28Hummingbird+Feeder%29
no wonder I'm confused! But are the birds? Are the fancy ones effective? In the past I've always used the most inexpensive I could find...
Thanks. t.
This message was edited Mar 14, 2006 9:04 AM
Your most Popular and Favorite HB Feeder?
This is one of my favorites for easy care, and it didn't cost very much at all, just a few dollars (like less than $5 - two years ago). The hummers don't seem to care one way or another as long as it has the sweet stuff in it. Just look for the widest opening you can find to make it easier to clean and prevent mold and mildew. From there the hummers will take care of emptying it for you. I have never had much luck with the upsidedown ones as they will drip onto the ground and attract ants.
ginni
Sorry - I forgot the pic
I have 3 humzingers, the 3 port, 8 oz size. I like the small size cause the nectar doesn't go bad before they drain it. I also have one like tgif has. I used to have others that held more, but the nectar went bad and they were so much harder to keep clean. I tossed them and use these now. Becky.
I hang about a dozen of the big guys - the 32 ounce BEST feeders when the hoards of hummies invade my yard :o) (the newer feeders now have a double ring for perching).
Elsewise I usually have about 25 homemade feeders hanging around my yard. I make them out of insulin bottles, test tubes and other small bottles. Of course, that means filling them up 2 to 3 times a day when there are hungry hummies about. I hang them amongst my vines, plants, trellises and trees. Spreading them around the yard helps keep bullly hummies from staking out claims on all the feeders.
Here's a prior post showing some photos of the hummie feeders I've made.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/542014/
crystal - looks like its their favorite, too!
crystalnurse! that one really seems to work!
I can't quite make out the pic, so I am wondering what kind of HBs you have in MO and also where did you buy your feeder?
I have a feeder of similar style, but my ruby throateds don't seem to 'take' to it...I wonder why...
I don't think it would matter how big a feeder I would hang- my guys do not share. I get several hummers but they do don't share. They dive bomb and chace one another and only feed one at a time. It gets wild sitting on the front porch watching while they are in chace. I use a large 4 port one in the tree and have a couple of tiny ones (single port) which I stick into hanging baskets of flowers trying to lure them closer. Last year they never went for the feeders in the baskets but rather fed from the flowers instead.
Karen
Karen,
If my plants were sufficient, then I would rely on these for the hummers also. However, in my backyard , the feeders are what the hummers are most interested in. Good for you that your plants are enough!! I have added new plants that attract hummingbirds over the past year. This growing season will determine whether or not the plants are sufficient.
beclu727,
I like the hummzingers also, even though my source is in New England. I have heard that if you have plastic yellow flowers against the red background, it attracts bees and leaves the hummers with nothing to eat. I have had absolutely no problems with ants and bees with the Hummzingers.
Take care,
Chuck
I can't afford the fancy feeders and have been using the cheap ones from Home Depot or Lowe's. My theory was quantity would work better. I think the birds will drink from anything as long as you have the right solution for them and hang your feeders in the right places. I have continued to add a couple of feeders each year and try to find the smaller sizes. If I am using the really large feeders I don't fill them all the way up and that way I can keep the solution fresh, but I don't buy those anymore. I always make sure there is bright red on the feeder in one fashion or another and the birds seem happy. We hardly had any hummers last year and I think it had to do with the storms pushing them around.