hummingbird food recipe sugar water ratio

The ratio that is proven safe for hummingbird food is 1 part sugar to 4 parts water, which equals about a 20% sugar concentration. How important is the sugar to water ratio? You don’t want to burn any hummingbird’s tongue! If you use boiling or very hot water, make sure you let the nectar solution cool to room temperature before putting it in the feeder. Mixing Tip: Warm or hot water will help the sugar dissolve faster.If you drink from your tap, the birds can too. Boiling your tap water first it may help your nectar last a little bit longer, but it typically isn’t necessary. Tap water (boiled or unboiled), spring water, well water, and bottled water are all fine. Which Water To Use: avoid mineral water or carbonated water.You WANT your hummingbird to be getting calories, that’s how they maintain their energy. Zero calorie sweeteners have, well, zero calories. Honey and syrups grow bacteria and fungus very quickly. Raw, organic and brown sugars can contain too much iron for hummingbirds. Use plain white table sugar only: don’t be tempted to use “fancier” sugar such as organic, brown sugar, powdered sugar, honey, agave syrup, raw cane sugar, or zero calorie sweeteners.Step 5: Fill your clean hummingbird feeder, or store in the refrigerator for up to 1 weekĪll the basics you’ll need for making hummingbird food at home.

Step 4: Let the mixture sit a few minutes until it reaches room temperature.Continue stirring until all the sugar is dissolved Step 3: Slowly add the sugar to the water while stirring.Step 2: Measure out 1/4 cup of white sugar.It can be warm from the tap, microwaved or boiled. Step 1: Measure out 1 cup of water and add it to your bowl.So, if you have space, plant a garden with plenty of Hummingbird and bee-friendly flowers (no pesticides, please) and put a hummingbird feeder out for them to drink your homemade Hummingbird Food out of.You’ll need white table sugar, water, a large spoon or spatula, and a bowl or pitcher. Once the feeder has been rinsed well and dried it is safe for the hummingbirds.

A ratio of 10:1 water to bleach is strong enough to kill any harmful bacteria. This is the same solution used in restaurant kitchens and is very safe and easy to make. If you are cleaning by hand, I use a diluted bleach water solution for sanitizing and disinfecting. I have two feeders that I rotate, one outside with food in it and one that is being cleaned and dried, ready for the next rotation.

Preferably, choose a feeder that can go in the dishwasher. The fancy, super ornamental feeders might be the worst because they aren’t easy to clean. The first thing you want to do is choose a feeder that can be easily disassembled and cleaned. The feeder has the potential to grow all sorts of fungus, mold, and mildew so it is very important to clean it regularly. There is one thing that is extremely important for the health of the hummingbirds, and that is the cleanliness of the feeder.įeeders are out in the hot air and any contaminants, such as dust, ants, bees, pollen, and bacteria from the bird’s beak, etc., will cause the sugar in the Hummingbird food recipe to start fermenting. We should never add red dye, honey or other types of sugar to Hummingbird Food, just plain granulated (caster) sugar and water. My Hummingbird Food recipe is very simple with only two ingredients, four parts water to one part granulated sugar. And although my Hummingbird Food recipe is a little different from my normal people’s food recipes, everyone needs good food, so I have a recipe for everybody, even the Hummingbirds.

I just saw our first hummingbird of the season this morning, he was drinking from the waterfall in our backyard koi pond.

Hummingbird food recipe sugar water ratio