Make The Best Hummingbird Nectar Recipe In 3 Simple Steps

by John Griffith
Advertisement

Hummingbirds are absolutely breathtaking. We can watch their small colorful bodies and fluttering wings for hours on end. However, if you want to have the luxury of enjoying this bird’s beauty you need to find a way to attract it to your garden. One way you can do that is by planting flowers hummingbirds love. But not everybody has the space or the garden. So, the next best thing is to get a hummingbird feeder. However, in order for your feeder to be truly effective and attract a ton of hummingbirds you need to make sure the nectar inside is irresistible. While you can buy nectar in garden stores, homemade nectar is way better. And it is super easy to make. So, let’s see how to make this amazing hummingbird nectar recipe.

Hummingbirds are absolutely breathtaking

hummingbird nectar recipe hummingbird flying to feeder

The Best Hummingbird Nectar Recipe

Every good feeder needs to be filled with delicious nectar in order to effectively attract hummingbirds. While these little birds eat a lot of things, the food they love the most is a simple nectar. And that’s exactly what we will be showing you how to make today. You can hang the feeders filled up with nectar on your balcony, attach them to your window, hold them in your hand, or hang them somewhere around the garden. After a while hummingbirds will start to appear more and more often around your property.

Every good feeder needs to be filled with delicious nectar in order to effectively attract hummingbirds

hummingbird drinking nectar

What You’ll Need:

  • White Sugar
  • Water

Method:

  1. Combine one part sugar and four parts water in a pot. For example, 1 cup of sugar to four cups water.
  2. Heat up the mixture slowly for a couple of minutes or until the sugar dissolves.
  3. Let the mixture cool and fill the feeders with it.

Combine one part sugar and four parts water in a pot

pot with sugar and water boiling

Hummingbird Nectar Tips

Now that we know how to make the nectar, there are some tips we want to share with you on how to keep it working effectively. If you want hummingbirds to continue visiting your home, you will need to make sure both the nectar and feeder are kept in tip-top shape. All the following tips are simple things, but are the most reliable ways to ensure these little birds keep coming back to your garden and home.

You will need to make sure both the nectar and feeder are kept in tip-top shape

pink and green feathers on hummingbird

#Use only white sugar

It’s recommended you only use pure white sugar for this recipe. Other types of sugars like brown sugar, cane sugar, coconut sugars, honey, agave, or any other artificial sweeteners should NOT be used in this recipe. This is because these types of sugars may have higher iron contents or are a breeding ground for bacteria. Both of these things are detrimental to the sweet hummingbirds. So, remember – only white sugar!

It’s recommended you only use pure white sugar for this recipe

sugar in a pot

#No red dye

While you may see a lot of store bought nectar come in a red color, this absolutely does not mean you need to put red dye in your homemade nectar. Save yourself a couple of bucks, as this is a step is completely unnecessary. If your feeders come in beautiful bright colors or you have plastic flowers attached to them, you definitely don’t need any dye.

You do NOT need to put red dye in your homemade nectar

red dye in humming bird feeder

#Feeder care

You need to change out the nectar at least once a week, however twice per week is the recommended amount. When changing out the feeder, make sure you dump out any leftover contents. Then give the feeder a good wash with warm water before putting in the new batch of nectar. Don’t just put in new nectar into the dirty feeder.

You need to change out the nectar at least twice a week

hummingird nectar recipe hummingbirds drinking from feeder

#Storing nectar

The great thing about this recipe is that you can make a bigger batch and store it in a glass, airtight container in the fridge. This way the nectar can stay good for up to two weeks and you won’t have to constantly boil a new batch. Depending on how many feeders you have you can amp up your quantities.

Make a bigger batch of nectar and store it in the fridge

multiple hummingbirds drinking from a feeder

This was our favorite, simple hummingbird nectar recipe you can make to attract more of these stunning creatures to your garden. We hope you found this article useful. Now you know how to make amazing nectar and you can expect to see a lot more hummingbirds fluttering around your property.

This was our favorite hummingbird nectar recipe you can make at home

hummingbird drinking nectar from flower

Related Articles

John Griffith

John Griffith is a young, passionate journalist. Writing has been John’s hobby ever since he was a boy. He has worked in some of the UK’s most successful news portals over the course of his professional career but found his forever home at Archzine.