I love looking at all the different bird that hang out in the yard but one of my favorites is the hummingbird. They really are beautiful birds that zip around the yard all day. I decided to get a closer look so what better idea than to put out a birdfeeder. Hummingbirds have a high metabolism so to supply energy needs, hummingbirds drink nectar from flowers. I wanted to find the perfect mix to make nectar for my feeder:

https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Hummingbird-Food

1. Make a rich sugar solution to attract hummingbirds to your yard. The sugary sweet mixture will encourage visiting hummingbirds to stay in the area. High-energy food is also important for hummingbirds in the spring because it helps to replenish the energy reserves that hummingbirds use up during migration.
2. Mix a solution of 1 part white, granulated sugar, and 4 parts warm water. Stir the mixture until the sugar is completely dissolved. Cane sugar is sucrose that falls into the carbohydrate family. Carbs are easily digested and give the hummingbirds the immediate energy they need to keep those little wings flapping. Organic and “raw” sugars contain iron and brown sugar, agave, artificial sweeteners, honey, should not be used either.
3. Boil the sugar water for 1 to 2 minutes. Boiling the mixture will slow down any bacterial growth that may occur. Boiling the water will also get rid of any extra chlorine that might be in your tap water (which in turn could harm the little hummers.)^[2] It is not necessary to boil the solution if you are only making a small amount of food for immediate use.
   • If you do not boil the mixture, you will need to change the food every 1 to 2 days, or else bacteria may grow in the mixture that could harm the hummingbirds.
4. Do not add any dye to the food. Though hummingbirds are attracted to the color red, red dyes have been known to harm hummingbirds. Natural hummingbird food (nectar) is odorless and clear–there is no need to add dye to your homemade hummer food.
5. Store the hummingbird food until you are ready to use it. Keep the food in the refrigerator. If you make a large batch of the food, you can keep the extra amount in the fridge until your feeder is empty. This will save you time when refilling your feeder.
6. Pick the right feeder. Red feeders are the best because the color red attracts hummingbirds. You should hang your feeder in a shady spot if possible because the nectar will stay fresh longer when it is in the shade. Hang your feeder in your garden if you have one. Hang your feeder near a window (but far out of the reach of cats) to be able to enjoy these beautiful little birds.
   • Some hummingbird enthusiasts say that you should only hang a feeder near a window if you have cut-outs of birds on the glass to keep the hummingbirds from flying into the glass and potentially injuring themselves.^[4]

There are lots of places to get a great feeder and they range in price from $1 up to $$. Dollartree, Biglots, Target, Wayfair, Amazon, the list goes on. As soon as I put my feeder out the little magic birds came to enjoy!