Keep hummingbird feeders full and clean. Hang them near a companion plant such as a fuschia.

Clean feeders often, and wash them out from time to time with a mild disinfectant.

Hummingbird feeders, with their sweet nectar, often attract sugar ants. You can keep those annoying ants from invading your feeder by using an Anti-Ant device that attaches to the hanging chain of the feeder.

You don't really need to take your hummingbird feeders down in the fall when the temperatures begin to drop off - the hummingbirds will start to migrate south due to an internal clock that lets them move on - even if there is plenty of food (like the nectar in your hummingbird feeder) available.

Be sure to check out Hummingbirds, a great source for hummingbird information on attracting, watching, feeding, and studying North American hummingbirds. The owner of the site, Lanny Chambers, says,

"I have tried to verify the scientific accuracy of all information on this site with hummingbird researchers, rehabilitators, and banders, and I will gratefully accept correction of any errors of fact or outdated material. My hope is that, by providing reliable advice, I can help other hummer enthusiasts become better stewards of these bold but fragile birds."

We think that Lanny has done an excellent job of providing a wonderful source of hummingbird information for the web.