Honey is not a good food because it spoils quickly and hosts a fungus that fatally infects hummingbird tongues, causing death by starvation. In addition to providing feeders, one of the best ways to entice hummingbirds to your yard is to create habitat that is attractive to them. Avoid using insecticides, fungicides, or other chemicals that could harm the hummingbirds. In the spring you can offer female hummers raw materials for their nests. They are fond of strands of human hair and lint from the dryer, especially in shades of grey, white, or blue-grey.
Hummingbirds enjoy dripping water, which they choose over still pools.
They enjoy darting in and out of sprinklers when you water your lawn. If you offer a pool make sure the edges are shallow enough for a hummer to stand in without being submerged. Hummingbirds will readily dine on gnats and fruit flies. It is easy to attract these beneficial insects by placing banana peels or melon rinds in an inconspicuous place near nectar feeding.