Hummingbird Food Recipe - Making Hummingbird Food is Easy

Everyone loves watching hummingbirds in their back yard. And it's great if you can plant the types of plants like honeysuckle or trumpet creepers that will attract hummingbirds naturally. And it's even better when you can have those plants situated in a place in your yard that allows you to easily view the hummingbirds as they flit about the yard going from plant to plant gathering the nectar they prize so much.

But the reality is that for most people to view the hummingbirds in their yards, they need to put a hummingbird feeder near on the patio or even use a window hummingbird feeder to attract them to a kitchen or bedroom window so we can enjoy them from inside our homes. But with a hummingbird feeder comes the need to replenish it with hummingbird food.

Hummingbirds are probably one of the most popular birds that people try to attract to their yards. Of course one of the simplest ways to attract them is to add to your yard the plants that they naturally feed on. This can include flowering plants like honeysuckle or trumpet creepers. But you may not be able to locate these where you can easily see them, so the next best solution is to mount a hummingbird feeder where you can see it, and that means you will need to fill it with hummingbird food.

One standard recipe for hummingbird food is to make a solution of one part sugar to four parts water. Many experts will recommend using cane sugar for your hummingbird brew (the white granulated type is fine.) Typically you will start with one cup of water and add one quarter cup of sugar. This should be about the right amount for a typical feeder, as you can often store the food for a while. Use water from the cold water tap (it has a lower level of minerals) but you may want to heat it to a boil before adding the sugar as that will dissolve the sugar more quickly and completely. This heating also reduces the chlorine level along with killing most bacteria, etc, in the water. After mixing let it cool and then store it in the refrigerator. It's best not to store it for more than a couple of weeks.

Although the recommended ratio is to have one cup of sugar for four cups of water, you can vary this ratio some as needed. For example, in the winter months you may want to add more sugar to increase the energy content of the mix.

When making hummingbird food, be sure you are using real sugar, since most artificial sweeteners have no calories, or energy, for the birds. It's also recommend that you not use honey, since it has different sugars (not the sucrose naturally found in nectar) and food made from honey tends to ferment quicker.

Natural nectar is odorless and clear, so there is no need to add food coloring to the mix, and the color of the feeder should be enough to attract your hummingbirds.

Once you start using your hummingbird feeder on a regular basis, the other thing you need to keep in mind is the need to clean regularly as well.

As pointed out above, the hummingbird food in a feeder may last around three to five days, less in hot weather, and will start to look cloudy when its going bad. Then you need to replace it and it's best to clean the feeder then.

Cleaning a hummingbird feeder is simple enough, but its critical that you don't leave any trace of the cleaner in the feeder. RINSING IS CRITICALLY IMPORTANT.

Most feeders are made to be cleaned easily, so take your feeder apart to start scrubbing. The cleaning solution you use can be:

1. Soap and water

2. Mixture of bleach and water (one part bleach to ten parts water)

3. Commercial cleaning fluids, usually these are organic enzyme mixes.

4. A mixture of water and hydrogen peroxide, about a 3% strength

A bottle brush or a special cleaning brush can be a big help. For tough stains you may want to let the feeder parts soak in the cleaner. BUT BE SURE TO RINSE.

For some feeders, the disassembled parts will fit nicely into the top of your dishwasher. Just drop it in and let it go!

For feeders with plastic parts take care if you are wanting to use a bleach solution, as it may cause them to fade. And of course don't get it on yourself. This is not nearly as big a problem with hydrogen peroxide.

Don't forget: RINSE