By Rasa Noreika: Dear fellow bird-lovers, please help the hummingbirds!
My husband and I have been feeding hummingbirds throughout the winter for a couple of years now and we have noticed that there are quite a few of them which stay with us during the winter. There are lots of hummingbird feeders out in the summer time, unfortunately, very few of them stay out on our patios and decks in winter when the birds need them the most.
Commercial hummingbird nectar, which is so easy to find at almost any store in spring is usually gone when fall arrives.
Please help the hummingbirds by bringing the feeders back to your patios and the birds will gratefully greet you on winter mornings with their merry chirp.
Wikipedia.org/wiki/Hummingbird has plenty of useful information about hummingbirds including the info on how to properly make nectar at your home.
Wikipedia recommends that only white granulated sugar be used to make hummingbird nectar. A ratio of one part sugar to four parts water is a common recipe. Boiling and then cooling this mixture before use has been recommended to help deter the growth of bacteria and yeasts.
Powdered and brown sugars can be deadly for hummingbirds. Please do not use them. Also water diluted honey is not suitable and can be harmful to the birds. There is no need to add red food colour dye to your homemade nectar. If your feeder has red colour it will be enough during the winter season to attract hummingbirds’ attention.
When you will bring your hummingbird feeders back to your patios this winter, please, remember to check them in the mornings, as the nectar may freeze overnight.
I hope you and yours stay warm and safe and have wonderful bird-watching winter.
Photo by Pslawinski
