Evening star., 1949-02-15
This and That
Bu Charles E. TrdcetUeU
a~CNDc ETNyxTh


Dear Sir:
II wonder if you would be so good as to
tell me when the hummngbirds will be here?
II read your article recently in which you
called them susurrbirds, or murmurlng-
birds. and that struck me.
II think hummingbird is the best. however.
These are such beauties, they always do me
good to watch them. Do they come to this
section of Washington?
II am new here, and wonder if humming-
birds like flowers grown on such red clay.
Our yard is nothing but clay Old resi-
dents say it grows flowers beautifully, but
what do you suggest to lure the humming-
birds?
Il probably will not be here another year.
so just some quick growing things, to lure the
hummingbirds, that is what want.
Best wishes to you and thanks.
Very truly, A. L."
Fortunately for our correspondent. there
is no section of the National Capital that
hummngbirds like more than Georgetown.
Maybe it is just that very red clay that
grows the flowers they prefer.
Hummers, after all, have their own minds,
although very tiny ones.
These minds are sufficient to guide them
in their annual journey from the South.
Crossing the Gulf of Mexico in one hop
Is not an easy thing for little fellow weigh
ing no more than half an ounce.
Not all of them make it, either. Scores die
as they land, one way or another.
The rest fly on and these are our friends
of spring and summer arriving here early IN
April, and remaining until September.
Flowers to attract them are the open-bell
types, such as gladioluses, petunias, trumpet
vine
Pink and red shades do best.
It is not the nectar in the bells the birds
are after. despite popular opinion.
What they want is the insect population
feeoing upon the sweet stun.
These insects usually are just hummlng-
bird size, and make fine baby FOOD Tor the
little hunmers.
Baby hummngbirds are "cute as little
red wagon" as they say in some sections.
They are about as big as peas, in nest no
larger than walnut.
There are usually just two of them. The
nest is so cleverly hidden, and covered with
moss. that mostly it goes unseen by human
eyes.
Not that the parents are shy They have
built their nests even on street lamp, Where
they must have been good and warm.
The insect food is carried to the babies,
but some OF 1t is eaten by the birds.
Father hummer stands for little monkey
business from other birds. He can put to
flight species much larger than himself.
Tradition has it that he will even impale
foe with that long bill, and be unable to
pull himself loose.
The finest hummingbird sight we ever saw
was 100 of the little fellows buZzing in and
around mimosa tree in Chevy Chase, Md.
The birds were making considerable noise,
too, as the humming of a single bird was
magnified 100 times.
The wings beat some 5000 times minute.
PetuniaS, such as Rosy Morn, planted In
window box will lure them every time.
No finer sight is to be had than one OF
them poised at a flower. Care must be taken
not to confuse the summer form of the
evening moth with the hummingbird. The
moth will fool almost any one, until 1t Is
seen to lack the long bill, and also definitely
is not a bird.
Almost every back yard garden in George
town has its hummingbirdS. When we used
to live over there, the hummers were so tame
they would fly to flowers within two feet of
ones chair One almost felt that 1t would
be easy to cup hummer with the hand. but
somehow one never tried it. Perhaps If he
had, an angry buzzing would have replaced
the placid humming all of a summers eve.
Let us give our correspondent one good tip.
Try growing asters in that red clay. If moth
ing has been grown in the soil before, the
asters will be the envy of the neighborhood.
Otherwise, they are not easy to grow. But
in that Georgetown red clay they do well.