Preparing for Feathered Friends

My better half and I purchased a beautiful, new hummingbird feeder last weekend. This will be the first time we’ll be making an attempt to entice these fascinating little birds to stick around our lot. I called Mom G for her hummingbird feed recipe.

Here it is:
• 1 part sugar / 4 parts water
• boil water
• measure and add sugar
• let cool
• do not add food coloring, honey (ferments) or artificial sweetener (no nutritional value)

Any excess can be stored in the refrigerator. She usually starts with 1/2 cup sugar to 2 cups water and puts only half of the mixture in the feeder. When the hummingbirds find the feed, she will add the rest.

Mom G suggests cleaning the feeder with hot water and a mild (10%) bleach solution between refills. This will inhibit any mold. Rinse thoroughly before refilling. However, she admits at times to just giving the interior a good blast with the garden hose.