Now that you have your hummingbird feeder, you need to add the sugar-water mixture that will mimic the nectar of many hummingbird flowers. Although there are commercial mixtures available you can mix your own nectar. This makes it easier to keep a supply fresh and ready to go whenever needed. Here is a recipe for making your own mixture.

Stick with the 4 to 1 ratio as this provides the closest approximation of flower nectar. Any stronger would be too sweet and harder to digest. Any weaker may cause the hummingbirds to lose interest in your feeder.

The advantage to the commercial nectar mixtures available is that they do contain nutrients, vitamins and minerals that makes them a more complete diet than the plain sugar-water mixture. The commercial mixtures come in instant powder form or as a liquid.

It is your choice whether to use the commercial product, your own mixture, or both. Just be assured that the hummingbird will get the nutrients it needs from flowers, small insects and spiders. The hummingbird is quite adept at catching insects in midair, finding in flowers, spider webs, leaves or branches.

Another question that often comes up is about the use of food coloring in the nectar mixture.There continues to be controversy over this and I think the best answer is that, if you can avoid it, please do so. The birds do not require it as most feeders have enough red on them to be appealing to the birds. If you feel you need it to help you monitor the level of liquid in your feeders, then use a minimum amount just so that you can see the liquid. Don't be heavy-handed with it.

Keeping the hummingbird nectar free from mold, harmful bacteria, and fermentation is the key to enjoying your hummingbird visitors for repeated seasons. It is best to change your nectar every 2 to 3 days in warm weather. If you notice a decrease in interest to your hummingbird feeder there's a good chance that the nectar has become sour. If so, you may find that you need to change it more often.