Do you have a name for your garden? Like Garden Paradise or Tomato Heaven? Ours is Farkee’s Farm though it is not a farm. But mostly we call it the ‘salt mines’ as in “where are you going? “ answer “Back to the salt mines.” It is a lot of work!

My garden is called "Deer Haven" since they are the ones that enjoy it the most.
I'll be in the Haven if you need me.

The Jungle.

Cactus Flats.

Soup & Stew

Out Back the garden

The Weed Patch

A garden name, hmm. I'll have to give that some thought.

Spring/Summer - Paradise Garden

Autumn/Winter - Pain in the Tush (eh.... am I allowed to use tush?)

I used to call mine 'Hummingbird Alley' but I don't grow as many flowers for them now that I have hundreds of photos of the birds. However, there are still lots of hummingbirds as more neighbours have hung feeders for them. The hedges and trees provide shade and shelter, summer and winter. I've had people tell me that they'd never seen hummingbirds sit still until they saw them sitting on the clothes lines in my yard. That size line seems just right for their little feet. In places where there are no outreaching branches I have placed pruned tree branches for them to sit out on so I can get pictures of them out in the open.
Otherwise, I am sure one of my neighbours would call my yard something like 'Jungle Queen Madness'.

@Growing Coastal, What kind of camera do you use for the hummingbirds and the insects that you posted here on the forum?

The camera is a Panasonic movie & picture camera I bought in 2011. It has the option to be focused manually, important for small objects like hummingbirds and something I paid extra for. Older images would also be from a Panasonic movie cam. If an image is from a movie clip it is not as sharp and they get edited. Being able to use a clip lets me choose a pose that highlights something of a bird or catch that split second where it is absolutely still. Even with a nice camera it takes patience and time.



Does anyone now if they eat insects off plants? Like possibly aphids or thrip? They do catch tiny flies. Fruit flies are perfect size. When I catch and release, the wee flies go to where the birds hang out.

Growing Coastal wrote: ↑Tue Jan 14, 2020 9:28 pm The camera is a Panasonic movie & picture camera I bought in 2011. It has the option to be focused manually, important for small objects like hummingbirds and something I paid extra for. Older images would also be from a Panasonic movie cam. If an image is from a movie clip it is not as sharp and they get edited. Being able to use a clip lets me choose a pose that highlights something of a bird or catch that split second where it is absolutely still. Even with a nice camera it takes patience and time.



Does anyone now if they eat insects off plants? Like possibly aphids or thrip? They do catch tiny flies. Fruit flies are perfect size. When I catch and release, the wee flies go to where the birds hang out.

Yes, their main source of protein comes from insects. As you suspected they consume aphids, thrips and fruitflies.
I will sometimes put my rotting fruit out by my hummingbird feeder. It attract the fruit flies and I can watch the hummingbirds eat them. I have only seen hummingbirds consume insects while they were flying.

I do see hummingbirds feeding from my tomato blossoms. I have pulled blossoms and there just is not much nectar there for the birds to be feeding from. My guess is that they are eating the thrips in the blossoms.

They do catch flying insects on the wing here. On summer evenings they are out 'bugging' here. The hummingbirds come out like fish do - when the bugs come out. I once saw one take advantage of a flying insect while the bird was perched on a twig. On mild winter days there are small clouds of tiny flying things providing lots of protein. I've seen the birds fly low to lick the ground on occasion, for minerals one supposes.
One spring I saw a Rufous hummingbird following a sap sucker in the woods so that it could have a drink from holes drilled in trees by the small woodpecker. They might also like aphid stickiness whatever that's called.
I've seen them try tomato flowers but they soon quit that.