By In the spring many thoughts turn to the outdoors. At this time of the year, we’re ready to get in the garden and do a little landscaping. For the hummingbird lovers, it may also be the time to think about adding a few new hummingbird feeders. For some, this will include adding a large bird feeder or two.
One of the advantages of a large hummingbird feeder is very apparent. It holds more wild bird mixed seed. This will mean not having to fill it as often as bird feeders which don’t hold as much seed. If you have your large hummingbird feeder mounted on a pole and it is some ways off the ground, this will mean not having to haul out the ladder as often.
However, there is a bad side to this. When you do finally have to fill up the feeder, you will be lugging a bigger bag or pail up that ladder with you. As large hummingbird feeders run in 20 to 25 pound holding capacity, you can see what I mean. First there is lugging out the ladder to reach the feeder to pour in the wild bird seed and then there is the hauling the bird seed up that ladder to pour it in.
Even with the larger amount of seed that you will have to handle you will find that this larger capacity does give you another benefit beyond just how much it will hold. A large hummingbird feeder also means more space for more birds. And what bird lovers don’t like to see more birds in his or her backyard?
But putting that large hummingbird feeder into your backyard will require some thought to landscaping. It’s not like it is a window bird feeder that you know will be right at the house. It will have to be placed correctly so that you can see it from the house but given its size it will need to play nice with the other aspects of your landscaping such as children’s play areas. When considering their placement in the landscaping perhaps it’s best to think of your large hummingbird feeder as a lawn ornament. This is where the style of your feeder will come into play as well. Though many of the larger feeders are the cedar barn style you will have some that come in other amazing shapes and materials such as copper. These other styles will not hold as much as the large barn style even if they are called large hummingbird feeders.
