Ditch The Traditional Bird Bath For A Hummingbird-Attracting DIY Solution

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There's nothing more exciting than spotting a hummingbird in your backyard. The sight might just be for a fleeting moment, but it's usually enough to make a gardener try any tactics they can to bring these adorable creatures back. Hummingbirds aren't just pretty additions to a garden; these tiny winged creatures are incredibly important pollinators, and they even help with pest control. One of the easiest ways you can try to attract more hummingbirds and other wild birds into your garden is by giving them ample opportunities for housing, hydration, and nutrition. For hummingbirds specifically, this can mean adding a shallow bird bath to your yard to give them a chance to rest and clean themselves. You'll also want to incorporate a running water feature to really bring these pollinators around. Thankfully, there are many ways you can make your very own hummingbird water fountain bath, DIY-style.

If you've watched any amount of DIY garden decor video tutorials, chances are you've probably caught a few from the Robbie And Gary Gardening Easy channel on YouTube. This couple has crafted some incredible garden pieces, just from basic items they've either thrifted or found around their home. We've even watched them turn an old coffee maker into a hummingbird water fountain. A DIY water fountain will keep your backyard hummingbirds clean and hydrated, and can even attract an assortment of other wild birds to your property. Robins, warblers, bluebirds, and orioles are just a few other birds you can bring to your garden by installing a running water feature. 

The main thing you'll most likely have to pick up from a store is a solar fountain water feature. You can sometimes you can find them on sale used, but you can also buy them online from big box stores. A GAIZERL Solar Fountain, available on Amazon, is a great bird bath fountain for hummingbirds. You'll also need a plastic straw, a large lidded plastic food container, a rubber mold for the birds, and scissors or a soldering iron. 

Source a large container with a lid to hold the water feature. A big plastic food container is the perfect choice for this. This container can be a few inches deep, as it needs enough water to run the solar fountain (you'll be adding on additional material that the birds will actually perch on later). Use a pair of scissors or a soldering iron to puncture one larger center hole in the top of the container lid and a bunch of smaller holes, which will allow the water to pass back through. Set your water feature into your container, and connect a plastic straw to the fountain, allowing the straw to come through the closed lid.

Next, the birds need something to sit on! Grab a waterproof material, so that your birds can enjoy perching and bathing. You could opt for any type of textured rubber material, but Robbie chose to pick up a few silicone waffle molds. Puncture a center hole through the rubber, and insert the plastic straw. Now, you can fill your container with water and get to decorating the outside however you wish. Set it in your garden and see what happens!