I put out a couple of feeders last year and they obviously didn't like what I had to offer. I had store bought powder that I mixed with water. I would really like to have them around this year so I bought a Fuschia plant and saw one getting nectar from it the other day. :-) I am getting ready to put out some feeders but I want to put in what they like. We have ruby throated hummers here. Any suggestions???
Amy
What do you put in your hummer feeders?
I just use 4 parts water to 1 part sugar and heat it until the sugar crystals dissolve then let it cool before putting in the feeder. I DO NOT use any red dye. I keep any leftovers in the fridge until needed.
Hope this helps
Just make my own sugar water like above. No coloring.
Now seems to me Scutler who is in SC too..I think, said since it is so hot there she just uses tap water & sugar so it doesn't make a syrup. Do make sure you change it every 3 days or so during extreme heat because it does spoil.
In Spring and Fall I make mine 3-1 then go 4-1 during Summer.
I do it just like crazybirdlady suggested. I tried the store-bought stuff only once, and the hummingbirds wouldn't drink it!
Thanks everyone! Happy birding :-)
We use 3:1 year round. It seems most people use 4:1, but I just like to give the birds a little more boost.
I have been looking around and can not find a reason why to not use brown or powdered sugar. Anyone know anything about this? DH had bought a surplus of these and I need to use them somewhere...
I'd be cautious about using brown sugar, without knowing if the non-sugar components of brown sugar (basically boiled-down grass sap) might not be suitable for hummers. Use it in coffee? On cereals? Very nice there!
Resin
OK, I'll use that up elsewhere.