Hummingbirds

This my new hummingbird feeder, a gift from my husband and the kids for my birthday. He had gotten me a different one at Christmas, which we have in the backyard, but we recently saw this one at Walmart and I fell in love with its vintage cuteness, and he surprised me on my birthday. It's part of the Better Homes & Garden collection and is called the "Antique Glass" feeder.

We hung this one in the front of the house, right in front of the living room window. It's great to be able to see it so clearly, and quite often I have been doing something in the living when I notice a little hummingbird drinking out of it. I never seem to be able to catch one on camera -- those little sweet things are so very quick!

The little tag which came with this feeder lists perennials to attract hummingbirds. This list includes bee balm, butterfly bush, phlox, salvia, lupine, Rose of Sharon, hollyhocks, honeysuckle, columbine, trumpet vine and coralbells. We have quite a few of these in our yard, and I had seen a random hummingbird here and there in past years. It's nice to finally have a little spot to see them more clearly, and I'm hoping the kids will enjoy their view into nature.

With my Christmas hummingbird feeder, my husband bought a bag of dissolvable solution, which he put in this feeder. They are attracted to bright colored flowers, such as the color red, which is why hummingbird feeding solution is often dyed red. I have seen some controversy about the red dye online, but this is what we have in it for now. Apparently you can make your own clear-colored solution with one part clear cane sugar to four parts water. I have not tried that yet.

If you have a hummingbird feeder, clean it out before refilling it. Use very hot water to rinse out the feeder and do not use soap! A bottle brush will apparently help you reach any dirty spots inside the glass or plastic.

In the past, I had a feeder that attracted tiny ants, but I haven't had that problem yet this year. Apparently the ants add some protein to the hummingbird diet, so don't worry if you see some critters marching into your feeder!