I’m not sure who is more in love with my flowers, me or the hummingbirds. I have a few who do a fly through and stop to visit every day. They amuse me with the hum and buzz of their flight, the occasional clicking sound where two or more are gathered, and their quick sips from my lantana, hibiscus, butterfly weed, crocosmia, or just about any flower with a little red in the mix.
I usually start cleaning and filling my feeders in March. This was an odd year, which is an understatement on so many levels, because I didn’t see my first hummer until July. By then, I had already cleaned and filled my feeders at least a dozen times, to no avail. I choose to chalk that up to 2020! But, lo and behold, by mid-July, they found my yard. Sorry little buddies, I tried. At that point, I let my flowers do the feeding.
In the southeast, hummers generally start arriving in early spring, but that isn’t always the case. Depending on your faithfulness in filling feeders, they can be year round visitors. Just wait until we introduce to my friend, Sam Ruffner’s, hummingbird haven. I often joke with Sam that he has the hummer market cornered. It seems to me that every single one of them in our area has his address and has shared it with all their friends and relatives!
Besides sharing this amazing video with us, Sam also shared his story and a few secrets for attracting these beauties. His love for hummingbirds actually started with his mother.
“My dear mother fed hummers and I started feeding them about 35 years ago, as I loved what she did. I do it now, not only for my friends and family’s enjoyment of these beautiful creatures, but, in part, in memory of my mother.”
While many of us might not embrace Sam’s dedication to attracting hummingbirds, 
it has obviously produced a very inviting environment. The numbers of visitors during the peak times of spring and summer are astounding! And, not only do they return every year, but sometimes one or two come year round, even in the winter.
“I saw my first non-season hummer on January 6, 2008. I looked out at my lone winter feeder and there was my new girlfriend. She has fed here every day since no matter how cold. She shows up every morning when the sun comes up and several times during the day. She usually feeds for several minutes at a time, being that the feeder is uncontested. I run to assure that her feeder is not frozen every morning and keep her nectar fresh as I feel somewhat responsible for this brave (or stubborn) hummer!”
Sam’s devotion to hummingbirds is a labor of love and I wouldn’t call it easy. He has about 20 feeders which he fills with about two gallons of nectar each day. The recipe is the simple, one part sugar to four parts water. If you are doing the math, that’s about 300lbs. of sugar during the year!
While neither you nor I may reach that level of commitment to hummingbirds, I am announcing today that next year I will add more feeders to my yard and keep them cleaned and filled. When I plant my flowers in the spring, I will continue to bear in mind the ones the hummers love to visit. I may never reach the numbers Sam attracts, but the extra time and effort will be worth every second. In the event I don’t have much success, I know where Sam lives.
*Many thanks to Marty Barr, Barr Studios, for the hummingbird photos. Thanks to Sam Ruffner for sharing his video, time, and hummer expertise.
