{"id":13753,"date":"2022-07-24T14:09:19","date_gmt":"2022-07-24T18:09:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/homegardenjoy.com\/site\/?p=13753"},"modified":"2023-08-18T15:24:15","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T19:24:15","slug":"when-do-you-stop-feeding-hummingbirds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/homegardenjoy.com\/site\/2022\/07\/when-do-you-stop-feeding-hummingbirds.html","title":{"rendered":"When Do You Stop Feeding Hummingbirds?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When do you stop feeding hummingbirds? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Usually in the fall when you start seeing fewer numbers at your feeder. Generally for me that’s a week or two before the first frost date for my gardening zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But there’s another, less popular answer to the question, “When do you stop feeding hummingbirds?” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That answer is: now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s why I’m no longer feeding hummingbirds from a feeder and why I recommend providing them with natural food sources (flowers) instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When to Stop Feeding Hummingbirds: The Problems with Feeding Hummingbirds<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I’ve written about the first time I saw a hummingbird back on Long Island, just outside of New York City, many times. How amazed I was with the little creature feeding on a geranium flower in the window boxes by our dining room, and how I loved to see them on the geraniums and hostas,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once I moved to Virginia, I couldn’t wait to hang up a hummingbird feeder<\/a>. I purchased several inexpensive plastic hummingbird feeders from the dollar store. Later on, I added a glass feeder from Tractor Supply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I religiously cleaned my feeders, changed the liquid, and made sure my hummingbirds had clean, fresh nectar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hummingbirds Stopped Coming<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, suddenly – the hummingbirds stopped coming to my feeders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I still saw them on the plants in my garden. They love the morning glory flowers, the geraniums<\/a>, gladiolus <\/a>and the zinnias. When the hostas<\/a> bloom, they feed on them, too, and in the early spring, columbin<\/a>e are a favorite flower. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I noticed that the hummingbirds preferred the flowers to my feeder!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Natural Food Is Best<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let’s face it – hummingbirds lived a long time before man’s intervention added backyard bird feeders! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it is fun to watch hummingbirds up close and personal at a feeder, planting flowers to attract them<\/a> is working with nature. It is providing the little birds with a natural food source that has no potential to harm them if you do not spray pesticides on the flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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My zinnia patch offers a natural feeding zone for the hummingbirds – plus zinnias are very easy to grow.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Diseases Can Be Spread by Hummingbird Feeders<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Hummingbird feeders can also spread diseases. Candida, a fungal infection, can swell the tongue, making it impossible for the little birds to feed. Other diseases which can be spread through dirty, contaminated, or spoiled hummingbird nectar include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n