How to Attract Hummingbirds to Your Garden?

HOW TO ATTRACT HUMMINGBIRDS TO YOUR GARDEN

WRITTEN BY: ANGELIA GRIFFIN

Hummingbirds are beautiful and helpful garden visitors. They are excellent pollinators, assist with insect control, and are fun to watch as they flit around the flowers. With good garden planning and some knowledge about their habitat needs, it’s easy to attract these important pollinators to the garden.

North America is home to 112 hummingbird species. They reside in every state except Hawaii. While these tiny birds measure less than three inches in length and weigh in at around 1/2 ounce each, hummingbirds bring huge benefits to any garden. They come in a variety of stunning colors, and their iridescent feathers reflect sunlight as they zip about, giving them the appearance of tiny sun catchers. For this reason, they have been aptly nicknamed “flying jewels.” They are delightful to watch as they flit to and fro in the garden, chittering cheerfully to one another.

No doubt, hummingbirds are both beautiful and highly beneficial garden visitors. However, to attract them, gardeners must intentionally provide some important elements in their garden planning. Implementing these four simple tips is guaranteed to attract hummingbirds to your garden.

PLANT THE RIGHT FLOWERS

Surprisingly, hummingbirds have a poor sense of smell and rely heavily on sight to locate food. Planting plenty of brightly colored flowers around the garden will attract hummingbirds. They are especially attracted to the shades of red. Therefore, adding plants to the garden that bloom in shades of red and orange is an excellent way to attract them.

Selecting a variety of plants that bloom year round will ensure hummingbirds have a constant source of food. Hummingbirds are particularly attracted by tubular flowers that hold more nectar, such as bee balms, daylilies, honeysuckle and petunias. As an added bonus, they are often attracted to many of the same flowers as butterflies, including butterfly bushes and milkweed.

PROVIDE A WATER SOURCE

Hummingbirds love water, especially when it’s moving. They frequently bathe to keep the sticky nectar residue off of their feathers to ensure efficient flight and proper insulation. Because of their small size, hummingbirds are not attracted to traditional bird baths, which can even pose a danger to them. They prefer a light misting of water that they can fly through for a refreshing bath. Providing a garden mister near their food source is an excellent way to attract hummingbirds.

You can also get a fountain that delivers a slow, shallow trickle or even turn on a nearby hose or nozzle to provide a constant gentle spray of water. If these are not options for your garden, providing a shallow dish of water and placing stones on the bottom to prevent accidental drowning can also work. Choosing a red dish will enhance the attractiveness for the hummingbirds. Always remember to place it in an area that will be well protected from prowling predators such as cats, which are lethal for hummingbirds.

CREATE A HABITAT

Hummingbirds are tiny and can be easy prey for predatory animals when at rest. Provide plenty of safe places such as shrubbery and small deciduous trees in or near your garden for hummingbirds to nest and rest. Thick or thorny bushes provide extra protection from hungry predators, and choosing varieties of shrubs that also provide nectar-rich flowers will be doubly enticing to hummingbirds. Hollowedout gourds with small openings are popular nesting choices for mating pairs and can be hung near an appropriate food and water source to create the perfect habitat.

PROVIDE CLEAN FEEDERS

Providing supplemental hummingbird feeders on your property is another important way to attract these birds to your garden, especially in winter when natural food sources are severely limited. Red feeders are particularly

attractive to hummingbirds. Fill the feeders with sugar water prepared by mixing four parts of hot water to one part of white sugar and boiling for two minutes. You can also purchase hummingbird nectar at most home and garden stores. Choose feeders that are easy to clean and fill, and make sure you provide a constant supply of fresh nectar. Change the sugar water regularly before it becomes cloudy, about twice weekly in hot weather.

Molded food and feeders can be lethal to these tiny birds. Never use honey, artificial coloring (including red), vitamin supplements, or artificial sweeteners in your feeder, as these also may be harmful to the birds. Place multiple feeders around your property in shaded areas and out of the reach of cats, dogs and other potential predators to ensure the safety of your little visitors and to keep them coming back.

Hummingbirds are fun to watch and highly beneficial to your garden. They help pollinate plants and are excellent for the control of flying insects such as mosquitoes. There are no disadvantages to the presence of these unique birds. Attracting hummingbirds is easy once you understand how. By implementing these four easy tips, you will soon have a garden full of these fascinating little creatures.