Hummingbirds are truly remarkable and fascinating creatures. If you want to attract hummingbirds to your yard and garden, you are in good company. It seems like everyone loves hummingbirds.

Birders who understand how to attract hummingbirds will create sanctuaries in their yards to fulfill all those basic bird needs with exactly what hummingbirds are looking for.

Food for Hummingbirds
The very easiest way to attract hummingbirds is to be sure they have plenty to eat. There are three ways to provide tantalizing food for hummingbirds: with plants, feeders, and insects.

Plants - Most of us are familiar with the hummingbird’s uniquely long beak. But did you know that they use their long tongues to lap nectar from flowers? Therefore, tubular flowers with long corollas are perfectly suited for their needs.

Feeders - Backyard hummingbird feeders provide hummingbirds with nectar critical to their survival, especially during fall and spring migration. Feeders may come with wasp, hornet, and ant guards, and they are often colored red to help attract hummingbirds.

Insects - To attract hummingbirds to backyard insects, avoid pesticides or insecticides that will kill off this food source and choose flowering plants that are also attractive to insects.

Nurture beneficial insects in the yard, and leave cobwebs intact so hummingbirds can pluck gnats and other prey from these natural traps.

Water for Hummingbirds
Water is a vital resource for all living creatures. Because of their diminutive size, hummingbirds prefer water that is only ¼” deep. This can be provided in a shallow birdbath.

Rocks can also be added to the bottom to achieve this depth and for better footing. Hummingbirds like to bathe frequently -- even in the pools of droplets that collect on leaves.

Provide your yard with a constant source of water from a drip fountain attachment or a fine misting device. A misting device is an especially attractive water source for hummingbirds.

Shelter for Hummingbirds
Make sure you have plenty of safe places for hummingbirds to rest and sleep in your yard.

Hummingbirds often perch to rest or survey their territory; some spots should be in the open and obvious for territorial birds, while others should be in protected areas, hidden from view and buffered from any cooler overnight temperatures.

You can attract, feed and nourish hummingbirds in your backyard with these few easy steps. Flowers, feeders, insects, water and perches are the key ingredients to a healthy yard that will attract these amazing jewels.