Friday, August 29, 2008

Hummingbirds

As you search on the internet about Hummingbirds you'll find there are a lot of articles on the net that tell you how to attract the birds and how to keep hummingbird feeders with sugar water and so on...

I'm of the firm belief that we should not intervene with Nature's natural patterns and the natural migration routes of these beautiful little creatures... so my method of practice would be to create a natural hummingbird garden full of their favorite plants....

We may not know the right time of year to take out the feeders or to put them in but if it is a garden full of flowering perennials and shrubs, we can leave that guess work up to Nature. If hummingbird feeders are not kept clean, we can actually do more harm than good... even the plastic feeders baking in direct sunlight are found to leech chemicals into the syrup feed!

The photos in this article are from a recent trip to a friend's cottage... I was so fortunate to capture these pictures of the hummingbird feeding on Evening Primrose flowers. Rather than having open grass around the cottage, my friend had decided to plant wildflowers everywhere! The beauty of this is that you can spend time watching the flowers grow, watching the bees flourish and in this case... sit quietly in the garden and wait for one of these beautiful little jewels to buzz by you on his way to hover over a flower while you snap your pictures...

This guy decided to sit in front of my face and check me out first before he went to his flowers... I tend to look at this encounter as if he interviewed me before he would let me take his pictures. When they are in their natural element (sans man-made feeders) they are fearless and in control.

3 comments:

steven chen said...

Visiting your blog, a strong feeling comes to me that as a landscape architect, the ability of observing and the attitude to nature is very important to develop their future projects.But calling on the public to care about the environment and worry about the pollution are as much important as former, it is not only for designers' hidden projects but for the protection of inhabitants.

Internet Investor Expert said...

Reading your blog, interesting a to the point. Mother nature is unique and beautiful and we all should take care of it. Our next generation will suffer for major destruction on he environment.






Travel Monkey - "Minkey"
Talk to Minkey Langston on Facebook!
said...

Hi Paul,
I just wanted to share a cute story about hummingbirds with you and your readers.

I know many people have heard of or been to the Sonoma Desert 'Museum' in Arizona. If you haven't, they have a hummingbird house that is absolutely charming. It's a large screened-in outdoor room with 2 open doors, and the birds fly in and out among the visitors with complete comfort.

I was standing in it in a state of amazement when a tiny little hummingbird landed on my arm and started picking the fibers out of it. It was oblivious to me and just continued until it had enough to fly off to deposit it's new "treasures" wherever they were stashed.

It was a charming experience, so anyone comtemplating getting some feeders, don't hesitate any longer when the season is right. It's one of the most delightful additions you can make to your garden!

Sharon Langston
http://www.landscaping-your-own-beautiful-garden.com