I love the humming birds

15 years ago

There are so many humming birds coming in.. Put your feeders out! 1 part sugar to 4 parts water is the recipe for the nectar

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Comments (8)

pjtexgirl
15 years ago
I have a female visting mine. She has a nest in a green belt Hackberry tree behind my property.
That is a great photograph of a beautiful bird! PJ
dfred
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks PJ... I have 4 feeders around the yard and they are all being heavily used. I love watching those little hummers buzzing around, chasing each other...
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debndal
15 years ago
That is a great pic. Mine won't stay still long enough for me to get a good photo. Usually my pics are just a blur as they fly off just as I snap. I guess the migration is starting cause my feeders are getting lots of attention too. They also love the black and blue salvia, turk's cap and flame acanthus. I have a great red ruellia that they all come and check out, but never seem to drink from. Don't know why, I always thought that would be a good hummer nectar plant, but......
pjtexgirl
15 years ago
I have only been here a month. At the last house I had a summer Anacanthus "hedge".It was lovely and there were ALWAYS something feeding off those flowers! I had a ton of hummers. I plan to do the same thing here as soon as I'm done "cooking" the grass in my hell strip and get this beauty of a flower in the ground. PJ
carrie751
15 years ago
My hummers love my flame acanthus, too. They feed on it BEFORE the Turk's cap.
LaurelLily
15 years ago
I haven't seen any in my garden for a couple years, but my husband managed to see two together the other day (when I wasn't home!). Hopefully that is good and means they are finding the plants I put out there to feed them when I can't make sugar water every couple days (but I did put the feeder out since he saw two, right by the window so I'll know if they come by).

I'm glad you have hummers! :) How fun.
lalo60
15 years ago
We live in NW Dallas. Although we have had years when multiple hummingbirds entertained us all summer, we have had several years when we have seen none at all or only one for less than a day. We saw one for a few minutes in March or April of this year. Then, about 10 days ago, one showed up and seemed to want to stay. We have many of the recommended plants in bloom, and we have two feeders that I clean regularly. This one visited the plants and the feeders multiple times for about a week, but now it seems to be gone. Any ideas? Is anyone in NW Dallas having continual visits?
ltcollins1949
15 years ago
Over the past 15+ years, during both spring and fall migrations, I have noticed that hummers come in waves, especially during the fall migration. A bunch will come through and feed for a few days, and then they will take off, and then a few days later a new wave will come in. And I have noticed that whenever I wake up to a wind coming out of the north, that the hummers will feed heavily and then take off. I won't see any for a couple to several days and then a new wave of them will come through.

Here in Rockport, Texas, the height of our hummer migration is generally from mid- to late-September with a few stragglers coming through during October, and with a few that overwinter. These birds are generally too old or too young to make the trip. During the height of the migration, we get thousands of hummers here in Rockport and the Coastal Bend. And during the month of September, I generally used 50 to 60 pounds of sugar for the little birds with two to three dozen feeders of various sizes in my yard throughout the month. And I have a large yard planted with hummer plants. So keep an eye out for fronts, and I believe that you will see that the hummers will take advantage of the fronts heading to the south.

Also don't forget to keep the cleaners and solution clean. The solution can grow a fungus that will cause for a chronic respiratory infection in the hummers. They don't know that it is bad, and they will continue to drink from the feeders. I put only enough in each feeder to be used within a couple of days. Then I pour out the leftover, clean the feeders and put new solution in the feeders. The solution will last in the refrigerator for 10 days to two weeks. Remember the solution is 1 part sugar (no substitutes) to 4 parts water, and please no red dye. It isn't necessary, and the feeders have enough red on them, that the hummers should not have any problems finding them. If you want lots of red, then wrap the feeder with red electrical tape or some other red tape.

Thanks!