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A Beautiful Solution

June 4th, 2015

I was having trouble with ants getting into my hummingbird feeder. Not only were they drinking all the syrup, they were chasing off the birds. Research on-line recommending an ant moat, others highly recommended using packing tape around the hook, still others used poison, which of course wasn’t an option here.
hummingbird (1)
Since I had packing tape in the office, I decided that was the easiest and cheapest solution! It didn’t work – at all. The ants walked right across the tape without any problems.
hummingbird feeder moat 3
I decided to buy and ant moat. After looking at so many plastic and metal ones that received mediocre reviews, I came across this beauty.
hummingbird feeder moat 1
hummingbird feeder moat 2
Now the hummingbirds can enjoy their drink without the ants and I don’t have to make nectar as often. I love watching these little guys from my kitchen window as I do dishes.

Do you have issues with pests at your hummingbird feeders? Any tips to keep them away?

8 Comments to “A Beautiful Solution”
  1. Ilene on June 4, 2015 at 6:25 am

    My hummingbird feeder is flat on one side and therefore hangs flat against a post. We have so much wind here that a dangle feeder pours out a little of it’s contents every time the wind blows and I’m forever refilling it. So, attractive as your moat is, it just wouldn’t work for me. About the only thing I have found so far is to smear on some Tanglefoot on the post, just a little up from the ground level and they can’t get past that. Has to be cleaned off and reapplied about once a year. Is a little bit ugly but does the job.

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  2. PennyAshevilleNC on June 4, 2015 at 8:26 am

    Oh! I have ants this year and had no idea they keep the humming birds away- I assumed the birds worked around them… good to know the tape didn’t work. Honestly, the ants are an issue but we have a vole problem so that is taking my time :(

    Reply to PennyAshevilleNC's comment

  3. Meg on June 4, 2015 at 9:41 am

    Most of my feeders now have a built in ant moat (Aspect brand) but I used to use Tanglefoot too. Usually put it on a wire or string between the hangerand the feeder. Worked like a charm.

    Reply to Meg's comment

  4. Mich on June 4, 2015 at 9:46 am

    Oh I would love to have humming birds…

    Reply to Mich's comment

  5. Kate/Massachusetts on June 4, 2015 at 8:28 pm

    I think I read on the Wild Birds Unlimited site last year that if ants get into the feeders, not to worry that the birds like the extra protein. We have a few ants but they don’t bother me much. It is the squirrel juveniles that drive me batty. They climb up the hummingbird feeder pole, reach out to the feeder and then suck down the syrup! They have a sweet tooth! My husband wired the feeders ten ways to Sunday last year and that helped although it was a major production to wash and fill them. This year I decided to just let it happen! I make a 2 liter bottle of sugar syrup and keep the extra in the refrigerator. With the squirrels drinking the syrup, the feeders get washed and cleaned more frequently than last year!

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  6. Nebraska Dave on June 7, 2015 at 11:00 pm

    Susy, ants, ants, and more ants. They go marching one by one, harrah, harrah. Down in the ground to get out of the rain. I don’t have humming bird feeders but I do have ants. They are in the garden in certain spots but they don’t seem to bother anything. They did hollow out my Redbud tree in the backyard which then had to be cut down and disposed of. Ants come out when the peonias are blooming. I think I heard some where that ants are needed for them to bloom. Come to think of it, I haven’t had ant problems for a couple years now. It’s been great. I’m not sure what changed.

    Have a great ant less day at the humming bird station.

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  7. Kara on June 16, 2015 at 7:15 pm

    A coat of Vaseline or some other greasy, gloppy product keeps the ants out of my hummingbird feeders. You only have to apply it once and even the rain doesn’t wash it off.

    Reply to Kara's comment

  8. Alley @ Alley's Recipe Book on July 6, 2015 at 11:33 pm

    Ah! I have never heard of an ant moat before! The ants aren’t too bad this year, but last year was really bad. I am sure they’ll come out now that the constant rain has stopped… so I might have to get an ant moat soon. Thanks for the tip! :)

    Reply to Alley @ Alley’s Recipe Book's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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