For the birds


Different birds visit during the different times of year, some live her year round, others, the snow birds, spend only the winter months in Florida.
My pictures aren't very good since I use a point and shoot camera, but I am still happy to have a 'record' of the ones here in Myrtle Glen.

Pictures of birds in Myrtle Glen

Black sunflower seeds are well liked by the birds, especially by the Cardinal couple, the other feeders throughout the yard hold cracked corn and mixed seeds.  I tried a thistle-sock, but that is being ignored.

Hubby made this large feeder house in 2008, it feeds not only birds but the squirrels as well.



The Cardinals and Mourning Doves love to eat and swing on this hypertufa bird feeder leaf



A simple round ceramic dish with holes drilled so water does not collect



And this is a fun project to do, an edible birdhouse






The Hummingbirds are fun to watch, they get used to people and let us get fairly close.  We don't have a sugar water feeder, but planted many plants especially for those little guys.

Hummingbirds love to visit following flowers in our backyard:


Porterweed, pink
Pineapple Sage, red
Salvia black & blue, dark blue
Shrimp plant, reddish pink
Coral Honeysuckle, coral red
Pentas, red
Bat faced cuphea, red-purple
Cuphea, Candy Corn or Cigar Plant, red-orange
Spiral Ginger, red with yellow
Bottlebrush, red
Epidendrum radicans, orange, purple, yellow
Firecracker, yellow
Porterweed, purple
Ruellia brittonia, Mexican Petunia, purple
Iochroma Sky King, purple-blue
Aloe flowers, pink
Powderpuff, white
Abutilon, orange-red


We do not offer a Feeder. As of right now, enough plants are growing in Myrtle Glen just for 'our' Hummingbirds. Since they migrate before the plants stop flowering here, I never thought it necessary to offer sugar water, with one exception: A few years back we had an exceptional cold winter causing massive cold damage on our plants. By March the Hummingbirds arrived and did not find any flowers. I did buy several good sized plants at the local nursery but we supplemented with two sugar water feeders.

Hummingbird feeder information:

  • 4 cups water, 1 cup sugar. rolling boil for 2 min. covered so no evaporation.
  • store in fridge up to 2 weeks. or freeze.
  • fill feeder half full
  • clean and refill feeders at least twice weekly.
  • mild solution of white vinegar to kill mold in feeders. use bottle brush, but no bleach.
  • hang feeders in shade. 
  • hang feeders so the birds cannot see each others feeder. 
  • at least 2 feeders per yard


The Ruby-throated Hummingbirds show up in Myrtle Glen in March and stay through September. All day they zip around Myrtle Glen, as soon as the sun rises until dawn.
They are used to us people and don't mind at all if I walk close to them.



Hubby made a Bird Castle

a pitcher for Wrens

and Mourning Doves aren't picky, any old planter will do

Go to the National Wildlife Federation's Garden for Wildlife page to read more about attracting birds.



"When you garden, you grow"