New This Week: Aldi Has An Affordable Feeder That's Great For Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds are hungry creatures. They expend enough energy every day to equal what would be over 150,000 calories for a human. With a number like this, you can imagine that the birds don't care if they're drinking from hand-blown glass works of art or DIY feeders made from household items on the cheap. The thing is, we humans might prefer having a truly beautiful feeder to look at while watching the birds feast. Aldi's new Belavi Hummingbird Feeder is pretty enough to pass for a high-end, hand-crafted product, but it rings up at a cool $9.99.

At such a low price, you may expect it to be a plastic contraption good for only a season or two. However, the bottle is made of painted glass, and the base is an attractive metal with five red flower-shaped feeding ports. Painted with subtle blue, yellow, or red backgrounds and fiery detailing, the Belavi feeders have streaky, bubbly detailing in crayon colors that mimic blown glass. At under $10 each, you can purchase all three colors for less than the price of other glass feeders with an artistic touch.

You can use these charming, colorful glass feeders alongside other methods to draw more hummingbirds to your yard or garden, but you can maximize their usefulness and beauty with a few smart hanging strategies. Aesthetically-pleasing spots can also make it easy and safe for the birds to feed from them. First, it helps to keep these frenetic friends safe while they're visiting. When deciding where to put your hummingbird feeder, see if you can place them near windows to be able to watch them. At between three and four feet from the glass, the birds will reduce their speeds to reach the feeders, making them less apt to hit the glass at high speeds.

Placing feeders close to flowers has value for both beauty and accessibility. A ground-mounted hook like Aldi's four-foot-tall Belavi Basket Stake, secured in a raised flower bed or oversized flower pot, is both a safe spot for hummingbirds and an eye-catching accent. The general rule for a safe height for a hanging hummingbird feeder is between four and six feet. On top of this profusion of flowers around the feeder looking stunning, it will also naturally attract the birds to a new feeder.

If you have an area with an overhang, consider interspersing the colorful Belavi feeders with hanging baskets of flowers. This becomes a festive fringe with tons of wildlife value. Hanging the feeders so that they get a bit of shade from the overhang helps keep the food fresher for longer, preventing the birds from eating potentially harmful spoiled food.