Attract Orioles To Your Garden!

It is all about the food.  The weather plays a role in that if it is colder then the food is on the table later.  Wind direction, rain and storms can change the arrival date some.  But it is the food that brings the Orioles home.  It has a lot to do with trees.  Some think it is trees in bloom.  Apple blossom and other fruit trees in bloom offer nectar.  Others think it is meat.  When the trees leaf out there are more bugs available for both Orioles and Hummingbirds.  Also, there is the sap.  Many migrating birds will follow woodpeckers north and eat the left over tree sap.

Regardless of what triggers the time of migration, timing is very important to the gardener.  Have the table set and the food ready before your guests arrive.  Orioles travel at night.  In the morning they are hungry and tired and looking for food and rest.  If they see something orange they may come closer as they hunt for familiar food. 

• Oranges.  Slice an orange in half and mount it on an Oriole feeder.  Be sure to start out with it out in the open where the birds will see it as they fly by and not hidden under tree leaves.
• Grape Jelly.  The oranges bring the birds in.  The jelly just may keep them there.  Many Oriole feeders have a spot for holding jelly or you can hang a jelly feeder.
• Nectar.  Orioles have been seen at hummingbird feeders and hummingbirds have been seen at Oriole feeders.  Giving them their own feeder will give the birds better footing.  And most Oriole feeders are orange color so they know it is for them.
• Mealworms.  These birds are meat eaters.
• Nesting Material.  DO NOT USE DRYER LINT!  It will harden and the nest will fall apart in the first rain.  Offer feathers, dog hair and only short pieces of natural fiber.  Do not be too quick to clean out old spider webs.  Hummingbirds like to use the spider silk for the nest.