Hummingbirds in your garden – how to attract them?

Hummingbirds are a wonderful addition to your flower garden. Maybe the flowers in your garden attract them. We can also make special plantings with the intent of attracting hummingbirds and pollinators. I wrote earlier about my new lantana garden, a 50 foot semi-circular strip added to our patio for color and to attract bees and hummingbirds. That article can be found here.

Whether you already have a beautiful garden that attracts hummingbirds or you have only a small patio, you can add hummingbird feeders. I have 3 hung close to the kitchen so that I can watch them. Making homemade nectar is as easy as mixing 1 part sugar to 4 parts water and bringing to a boil. I store any extra in the refrigerator.

The hummingbird is an amazing creature. It consumes half of its weight in sugar every day. Its heart may beat over 1000 beats per minute. Its wings are approximately 30% of its body weight and can flap 50-200 times per second. The hummingbird can fly 30 mph and will reach speeds of up to 60 mph in a dive. All of this leads to the telltale whirring of the wings when they are near, and also the clicking and chirping as they interact with each other, often protecting their territory (nectar).

My husband Don is my photographer and notes that predator birds (eagles, hawks) in flight present a challenge to photograph, to get the shutter speed and focus right, but these little birds are much harder. Here is one of his pictures selected from over 100 pictures, that captures a hummer in my Duranta repens bush.