
A few days ago, a friend asked me how to get rid of bees on the hummingbird feeder. I didn’t have an answer because in all the years of feeding hummers, this is the first year I’ve had that problem. In fact, the bees are so tenacious, I have to blast them off the feeder with the garden hose to refill it. From time to time, even the hummers have a problem finding a spot to feed.
After doing some research, I learned that this is a common problem, but there seems to be no one perfect solution. Some of the suggestions seem to rely on the fact that bees aren’t that smart: remove the feeder for a few days or move it a few feet and hope the bees won’t find it again. Another is to move the feeder to a shady spot because insects prefer to feed in full sun.
The best option seems to be selecting a feeder that’s insect resistant and surprisingly, doesn’t have yellow accents. Apparently insects are attracted to the color yellow. As you can see, my feeder has yellow flower feeding ports.
One thing for sure is NEVER use insecticides around the feeder because they’ll harm the birds. Also, cooking oil and petroleum jelly may deter insects, but isn’t a good solution either because the oils can get on birds’ feathers and make it difficult for them to preen and fly.
I can’t figure out why I suddenly have this problem with the same feeder, same location, and same nectar. I checked and the feeder isn't leaking but I read that sometimes hummers dribble nectar when they feed. The first thing I’ll try is moving it to a spot a few feet away with more shade and hope that my bees aren’t clever enough to find it.