Here’s Why Making Your Own Hummingbird Nectar is Better Than Buying from the Store
I'm pretty sure most, if not every, hardware store and garden store sells hummingbird nectar. It's so fun filling the feeders with that stuff and watching the hummingbirds stop by. There are a few reasons that I found that say why it's better to actually make your own hummingbird nectar rather than buying it at the store.
If you haven't seen hummingbirds yet, they're coming! At the beginning of March, I wrote a post about hummingbirds starting their migration process. In that post, I mention that the experts say that hummingbirds get to Minnesota around May 1st.
Why Should You Make Your Own Hummingbird Nectar?
There are a few reasons that it's a good idea to make your own hummingbird nectar. The first is that it's better for your wallet. The nectar I've seen ranges from $8 to $13. The recipe for homemade nectar is just water and white cane sugar. You can use water from the tap and you can get a 4-pound bag of can sugar at Target for $2. A website called Garden Myths wrote about homemade hummingbird nectar and they said that a big bag of sugar can feed thousands of hummingbirds.
The other reason homemade nectar is a good idea is because it's better for the hummingbirds. Many hummingbird nectars are dyed red and that dye is actually bad for the hummingbirds. The reason many are the color red is because people say that color attracts hummingbirds. Garden Myths talked to the Ontario Hummingbird Project about if the color red actually attracts hummingbirds and they said the color ON the feeder itself will attract the humming birds but the color of the nectar doesn't matter. So when you make your own hummingbird nectar, don't dye it red.
How to Make Homemade Hummingbird Nectar
It's really easy to make your own hummingbird nectar. The Hummingbird Society shared a recipe on their site. It's just 1 cup of white cane sugar and 3 or 4 cups of spring water (tap water is also fine). You dissolve the sugar in the water and then put it in the feeder. You can store any extras in the refrigerator for up to a week.
One important thing to note about the recipe is the type of sugar. You have to use either white cane sugar or beet sugar is also fine. No other sugars should be used and they should also not be organic. You can get more information about this recipe HERE.
Since it's warming up enough for hummingbirds that means it's warming up enough for ticks. Keep scrolling to check out the different types of ticks that live in Minnesota and how to prevent tick bites.