There are many things to love about summer, but for me two of the highest on the list are watching hummingbirds and working in my garden and watching it grow. And yes, these two are connected as I grow many, many red and purple flowers that are hummingbird magnets. My garden and yard are all about attracting animals, be those insects like bees and butterflies, or birds like warblers and hummingbirds.
Each spring I wait in eager anticipation for the first of the migrants–these will be male Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds– to arrive at my feeders and every spring it’s the same– I gather ALL (10!) of my hummingbird feeders, make fresh nectar, fill the feeders and put them out with red ribbons on them in my attempt to shout out to the little birds that “YES! THIS IS A GREAT YARD. You will be happy here! Why not stay?” After putting out all of the feeders I then walk around for days in a state of high alert, listening for the telltale sounds their fast-moving wings make as they whip through the air, constantly watching the feeders for any signs of hungry birds thirstily drinking my humble offering. To say I’m a bit distracted by the potential of birds arriving is a bit of an understatement! It’s amazing I get any other work done! After the males arrive and have been here a few days, then I know I can start looking for the females.
I keep records of the things going on in my yard and know that here in western NC we usually see our first hummingbirds right around the first week to second week of April, with the 4th being the earliest we’ve ever seen them and the 15th being the latest. It is important to have the feeders out when the birds are coming through, so they may be tempted to set up shop here rather than move on to unknown destinations north. You can check out the live ruby-throated hummingbird migration map to see when hummers will be in your area. If you don’t live in western NC this will be helpful to determine when you should start looking in earnest for these amazing little birds.
Don’t you agree that they really are a joy to watch? And not hard to attract to your yard. Want to know more? Here are some of your hummingbird questions answered. Here are some ways you may be hurting and not helping the birds and here are some hummingbird facts that will absolutely stun you.
Happy hummingbird watching! And please, do drop me a comment if you have seen them already in your yard. I’d love to hear from you!