Hummingbird Nectar is Simple Syrup
Every nursery I visit, I'm amazed at the prices of hummingbird feeders and nectar. The feeder in this picture can be found at Ace Hardware for half the price. If you're in the South, there's probably an Ace Hardware or a similar store just 5 minutes away – always check there first for bird feeders.
Now, about that nectar. $15.99 for what's essentially a few cents worth of sugar and water???!!! Here's the recipe for nectar from the National Zoo:
Ingredients:
- Sugar
- Water
Directions:
- Mix 1 part sugar with 4 parts water (for example, 1 cup of sugar with 4 cups of water) until the sugar dissolves.
That's it! One step. Store the mixture in an empty milk carton or water bottle in the fridge. For easier dissolving, heat the water like you would for simple syrup.
When we first bought our hummingbird feeders years ago, we just bought the mix packets sold right next to them and were confused when no hummingbirds came. After reading up, we realized how easy and inexpensive it was to make our own nectar. The best part? The flying jewels came to sample our tasty beverage the very next day!
There are some premade nectars that mention they include vitamins to aid egg hatching, but I'm not sure if that's helpful or just marketing. If you know, please drop us a line. However, if you're paying those kinds of prices for just sugar and water (e.g. simple syrup), you might be a different kind of simple. 😉