I *heart* hummingbirds.

The end of March means two things to me.

1. My birthday

2. Hummingbirds!

Okay, so call me an old soul. Between my love of gardening and sewing and vintage aprons and bird watching, it's probably an accurate title. But I so look forward to the arrival of my feathered friends every spring! Besides cleaning and refilling my other bird feeders, today I cleaned my hummingbird feeder and filled it with fresh nectar solution. Right now I'm lazy and buy it, but with how much I go through (especially in the summer!), I may start making my own. Here's a recipe I found online for how to make from-scratch hummingbird food:

1. Boil 4 parts water.
2. Mix 1 part ordinary white granulated sugar.
3. Stir and allow the mixture to cool.
4. When the nectar is room temperature, fill your clean hummingbird feeder.

Tips:

1. Never use red dyes or food coloring, as they are not healthy for hummingbirds or orioles.
2. Never use honey when making your nectar mix. Honey attracts bees and can grow black fungus that will cause a fatal liver and tongue disease in hummingbirds.
3. Replace the nectar once every three to four days and clean the feeder thoroughly.
4. Unused nectar can be refrigerated for up to two weeks.

Thanks to Best Nest for the recipe.... 

Oh, and if you have hummingbird visitors, you should be like me and keep track of what sub-species you see! You never know- you could be surprised by a rare or little-seen variety. Here in Georgia, you can write into the DNR and report your sightings, which helps to track how the hummingbirds are doing, as well as monitor their migration patterns. You can check out their website here, or look for your own state's site. Here's one of my friends visiting last summer....