Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
When I hang my hummers food trays, all I get is bees and wasps. What can I do? And no matter where I hang it, they come.
Thank you.
By Lorraine
Birds are super sensitive to the spray. Reading the can is your first hint. It will kill your pet bird is another hint. Please do not do this ever. It is horrible. Also the bees carry it back to the hive and you can guess the rest. Bees are in big trouble and do not need us to add more threats. There are much more sensitive ways to control them. Yellow flowers on feeders are no good, reduce proportions to 1:5 instead of 1:4. Make super strong 1:3 or 1:2 nectar for bees in their own feeder and move it away from your hummer's feeders, a little further each day might be best so the can move along. Call Hummingbird Society in your area for more ideas but no bug spray. Ever.
Bees are going to the coloured sugar water I hang from the tress for the birds, near their food. How can I prevent or distract the bees from taking over the bottle? They get angry if I chase them away.
By Fiona
I've learned that the coloring is very bad for hummingbirds. Making your own nectar is simple (1 part sugar to 4 parts water) -- the red coloring is not necessary as most feeders are red anyway.
I need to know how to keep bees away from my hummingbird feeders. I have two hanging in my yard and the bees just all of a sudden showed up one day a couple of weeks ago and now the poor hummers can't get a drink in edge wise. I have to hose them down just to be able to get the feeders down to refill them.
They have even found a way to get inside the feeders, then they float to the top and paddle around until they die or until I open it to refill it, then they are in my kitchen and I have to battle them with the fly swatter! I have already been stung twice and I really enjoy watching the hummers and would hate to have to take down the feeders.
By tntme from Long Beach, CA
Normally they can't make it into the feeder that just puzzles me. It sounds like the holes in the feeder where the hummers stick their beak and tongue in is too larger, a bee only needs 3/8 inch space to get into. I hate to say get new feeders with smaller feeder holes but that is what you might be what you need to do. Or if you can find a mesh small enough to put behind the first little screen.
If the bees can't get to it, they will after several days quit coming to it. They smell the sugar and want it but if they cant get to it the busy little critters don't waste time with it and move on.
If there are that many is there a beekeeper keeping bees close by? Bees travel up to 1/2 mile away from the hive. Check any small opening into something dark like a wall or piece of equipment.
If you do have a beekeeper with bees close by contact them because they might have to reevaluate the situation for their bees and can give you more tips for handling the busy little bees! Good luck
What is the best way to keep bees away from my hummingbird feeders?
A red feeder attracts the birds and yellow attracts bees, so avoid yellow. Move your feeder often, too
I use mint flavoring found in the spice sections of any grocery store. I use a cotton swab to smear the flavoring around the ports and any sections where the bottle connects to the feeder or where the bottom of the feeder snaps together. I do this each and every time I clean my feeders.
I got so frustrated with this very issue and I ended up buying 4 more feeders and put them in different areas and still had bees but not as many in one spot so the hummingbirds had a chance at least. So basically I decreased the masses in each area. Linda H. Omaha, N.E
OK, it's gross but it works. I had bees as big as the hummingbirds, flying up fast enough to bump them out of the way. I made sugar water in a jar-used an old spaghetti sauce jar and filled it about 1/3, I just mixed a bunch of sugar with water until it seemed thicker, no heat or anything. I just sat the jar on the porch rail near the hummingbird feeder.
There are so many suggestions;
no yellow - use oils - clean feeders - etc
I have just put out my feeders and I read that you reduce the amount of sugar in the mixture and the bees did not like it so much but it still gave the hummers enough nourishment. Time will tell. Also, some of my feeders are kinda high (to keep out of direct sun) so I always have to rinse them to make sure I did not spill any mixture on the outside.
Don't put any oils, Vicks Vapor Rub, Pam Cooking Spray, Duct Tape, Off, Skin-so-soft, or Vaseline on your hummingbird feeder. These may work slightly. However, hummingbirds have a tendency to fly around frantically and bump into feeders quite often. If there is oily stuff or duct tape on the feeder, it can get into the feathers. The hummingbirds will have a hard time getting it off and it's not all that good for them. Plus, most of these items will melt in the heat making goo run all over the place. Please don't use these items.
Here is a web site that has some very good information on this subject:
Many people recommend mint extract or essential oil to deter pests. This is a page about using mint to keep bees or wasps from a hummingbird feeder.
This page contains the following solutions.
The best solution I have found for keeping bees and wasps away from hummingbird feeders is mint extract of some sort. After I wash the feeders, and before I fill them, I take a Q-tip, dip it in the extract, and apply it to the ports.
I have had a lot of problems with yellow jackets, ants, and paper wasps around my hummingbird feeder. To solve this problem I took a strip of cotton and sprayed it with Raid Hornet and Wasp spray. You only want to dampen the cotton. Then I enclosed it in an onion bag, those mesh or net bags onions come in.
How do you use the mint on a hummingbird feeder?
I am having this difficulty for the first time ever... I have had hummingbird feeders for at least 10 years and this is the first time for honeybees to be attracted to my feeders. This is what I am trying: 1/2 cup white vinegar to 1 cup water in spray bottle. Spray around the base of the feeders only. So, far so good.
Use Mint Extract. After washing your feeders and before you fill them, take a Q-tip, dip it in mint extract, and apply it to the ports. Also apply underneath feeder, to the edge where the bottle comes in contact with the bottom, and, if applicable, along the seal created when putting top and bottoms together. Also dab the mint sporadically on bottle. Bees do not like the scent and will eventually give up. The bottle of mint will go a long ways by using a Q-tip.
ThriftyFun is one of the longest running frugal living communities on the Internet. These are archives of older discussions.
How can I get rid of honey bees at humming bird feeders? The bees chase the hummers away. They completely cover the feeders.
I am looking for a solution to keep bees and yellow jackets away from my Humming bird feeders. I had a Thrifty tip about a brown paper bag, but lost it.
I have hummingbird feeders and the honey bees and bumble bees are taking it over. The hummingbirds cannot feed. Please tell me how to get rid of the bees.
