Glass and ceramic hummingbird feeders (and seed feeders for songbirds) need to be stored indoors or in your garage during freezing weather. Since hummingbird feeders are filled with liquid nectar, freezing temperatures will cause the nectar to expand and possibly crack or damage your feeders. Sometimes there are hairline cracks that can snap a glass piece in two when frozen nectar expands.
Any exposed terra cotta in your hummingbird and songbird feeders can absorb moisture which can also freeze and break your ceramic pieces. I learned the hard way last year when I kept a ceramic bird bath out in my yard all winter and had shards of ceramic on my porch after a big freeze. Whoops!
Even hummingbird feeders that are plastic are best stored for winter. The freezing nectar can warp plastic, and hard freezes can break plastic pieces. UV light weakens plastic, and remnant nectar can grow some nasty bacteria that adheres and corrodes plastic. You can actually ruin and destroy your plastic feeders by leaving old nectar in storage. If there's snow on the ground and ice on the drive you won't be seeing hummingbirds anyway. Best to just put your feeders away for next season!
It always helps your hummingbird plants if you winterize your garden - lay down some fresh mulch to add nutrients to the soil, and add compost materials to your beds. Throughout winter remember to water plants if you don't snow or rain for a couple weeks - plastic rain gauges near your plants are a great way to monitor the actual water your plants receive. In desperately dry climates you can add polymers to the soil that swell when water is plentiful and then slowly distribute the moisture into the soil. Lots of nurseries and gardening catalogs sell these and they are great to use in xeric gardens year-round!
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