I came to this forum in search of this very same topic. I have not fed hummers in the past, I was really just working on getting my gardens established. Last fall I had a hummer come through my yard and I didn't even have a feeder out (I remember seeing him at one of my perennials but I don't recall which one.) Anyway, this year I've added more hummer-friendly flowers even though none are blooming right now I did set my feeder out 3 days ago just in case. My neighbor told me she had a Hummer at her feeder last week so I'm guessing I might've missed my window. I've noticed that the robins (most numerous bird in my yard) are constantly flying around the HB feeder and landing on the shepards hook that the feeder is on. The feeder is Very close to a small lilac shrub (didn't bloom this year - too new I think) and a very mature cherry tree. All the birds in my yard LOVE the cherry tree. I haven't even had to set out a bird feeder this year, I just toss stale bread out once every few weeks and they have a field day between that, the cherries and the worms/grubs/insects in my yard. I just wonder if it's too much bird activity for hummers?

Are they honey bees or yellow jackets? We have problems with yellow jackets this time of year but during the spring we had a 'swarm' of bees for at least a week. They eventually left but we found if we put out a weaker mix of nectar the bees lost interest. This time of year we use the bee guards to keep the yellow jackets out of the feeders. The guards also prevents the surprise of YJ's popping out of the tubes when the Hummers go to feed! :) You might try adding 1-2 more feeders.........make a stronger nectar mix for the bees in one feeder and hang two extra feeders elsewhere in the yard, filled with a regular mix for the Hummers We have Anna's Hummingbirds year round so we have no fewer than 6-8 feeders to tend to. Come this winter we'll probably have 30 hummers to feed. Below is our favorite feeder, and in the winter we add the large sizes. Here is a link that might be useful: Best feeder

I know what a thrill it is to get a cardinal -- the farmhouse I lived in for 18 years had none when I first moved there -- I was so excited when my efforts with feeders, birdbaths, and habitat additions started paying off and the cardinals arrived! Cardinals will come to hanging feeders as long as there's an area big enough for them to land on, as indicated by pondwelr. They often can't feed from tube feeders because the perches are small for them to sit on and twist around enough to get into the ports, but if there's a tray attached to the bottom, like pondwelr has, they can sit on that and feed. Some of my tray feeders have been on posts and some have been hanging -- and sometimes I feed right on the ground or another flat surface (where I live now we have a patio surrounded by a stone wall and we put seed on the top of the stone wall). Unhulled seed is great because you don't have all the hulls all over the ground, and the birds love it (less work for them, too!). It is more expensive but that's the biggest drawback. I don't have a house sparrow or finch "problem" where I am, but in my old farmhouse I had dozens of them -- I put cracked corn and millet on the ground for them; they still ate some of the black oil but they also ate on the ground a lot and it saved me a little $. Or so I like to believe :) And the millet draws in other little sparrows that aren't as common as house sparrows, like the white-throated and white-crowned sparrows, during migration. The more activity you get, the more you'll draw in. Warning: feeding birds can be addictive! :) I'm including a link for the birding forum -- it's a great place to learn more about birds, if you're interested. Have fun! and enjoy those cardinals! Here is a link that might be useful: birding forum

Squirrels on bird feeders is an age-old problem. You need to purchase squirrel-proof feeders (I have some that work great) or install squirrel baffles above and/or below the feeders. Google squirrel-proof and squirrel baffles.