Gardens are a scenic way to grow fresh flowers, fruits and veggies, and herbs. But besides producing food, they also attract plenty of nature — birds, insects, and even deer and groundhogs. If you’re a bird lover and want some small, sweet hummingbirds to flock to your garden, don’t assume they’ll come for those fresh veggies. You’ll need to use overripe bananas to bring them around. As it turns out, old bananas are good for more than just making banana bread after all.
There is a chain reaction at play here. As bananas get older, the sugars start to break down, ultimately rotting the fruit over time. This attracts fruit flies, which, in turn, attract hummingbirds. The small birds feed on small bugs, such as fruit flies, as a source of protein. Just make sure not to hang that banana right outside of your door or window, so the flies don’t make their way inside to your other fruit. The added upside to bringing your overripe bananas outside is it’s a good way to get rid of those pesky fruit flies that probably took up residence in your home.
Bananas bring all the hummingbirds to the yard
For the best results, suspend the bananas from a tree branch or something high enough so other lurking animals, such as racoons, won’t be able to feed on them. You can hang old bananas, or just old banana peels. Place the bananas on a plate or dish, and use twine or some other sturdy string to hang it. From there, add thin mesh wiring to cover the bananas, which helps prevent wasps and bees from devouring the fruit but will still attract the flies and hummingbirds.
Of course, this works best with decomposing fruit, but you could try it with other sliced or peeled fruit, too, especially strawberries. If you want to attract hummingbirds without going through the effort of creating your own homemade feeder, you can also purchase a hummingbird feeder and fill it with a mixture of water and refined, white sugar. And if fruit flies are still a problem even after taking the fruit outside, you can remove them with a little whiskey.
