I was at my mom’s house today in Cary. They had just seen their first hummer yesterday. Today I heard it chittering as it flew across the yard. Then we saw a skinny little male at the feeder. He was sitting on the perch, not hovering. Probably still tired from his long journey. 
The males usually arrive first to set up their territory, then the females follow. It’s surprising how much noise the males can make when defending their territory.
After seeing the hummer, I got my feeders out, made up some sugar water and got them set up. We usually get several hummers in both the back and front yards. We’ll eat dinner outside and get to watch the birds come to eat, watch them chase each other around and try to see in which tree they end up perching.
It is recommended to just use sugar water for feeding, no need to get something with a red color in it either. Use 1 part sugar to 4 parts water (well or tap water is best). I do like to heat the water to get the sugar to dissolve, then let it sit to cool. Once cooled put it in the feeders. I usually mix up about 2 cups at a time and store the rest in the fridge.
The sugar solution needs to be replaced every few days or so, if it gets cloudy, it’s spoiled. Don’t put too much solution in a feeder at first, because you’ll just waste it if the hummers don’t come right away. Keep an eye on the solution, but the hummers will usually let you know when it’s spoiled or empty. They like to hover outside my kitchen window when there’s no food.
My favorite feeder is a round flat type like the one shown below at the right. It is super easy to clean, 
has a little moat for water to drown the ants (they still get in anyway). It’s also pretty wasp-proof because the sugar water is low enough that they can’t reach it. The hummers appreciate the perches too. Notice that there is no yellow on this feeder (the feeder shown above does). Wasps and bees are attracted to yellow and you don’t want them around. The multiple feeding stations are also good, in case a big ant or other bug is at one, the hummers can still use the others. You won’t usually see more than one bird feeding at a time, but sometimes it does happen.
I also like to have flowers for the birds. Hummers will go to any flower with nectar, no matter the color. However red will attract them to the area initially. Plant a hummingbird garden to supplement your feeding, or just use the plants if you don’t want the responsibility of maintaining the feeders.
So see if you can get some hummers this year, you’ll love watching them. They are truly amazing.
Check out this website for more information on hummers: http://www.hummingbirds.net/
UPDATE: Saw our first hummer today (18 April) at our back feeder. A male.
Protect your hummingbird feeder from squirrels as well as other things like ants and wasps. We had a hummingbird feeder, and one time when we went to refill it, we discovered that squirrels had chewed off and enlarged the feeding ports to get to the sugar water. Yes, the feeder ports were yellow, and they chewed off all the yellow (but not the red) – I am not certain the color was the major contributing factor. The bottom line is that in addition to the intrusion of ants and wasps, one must be aware of the “invasion of the squirrels”. Look at some of the squirrel prevention schemes (Google on squirrel prevention) and take whatever measures you deem necessary.
I think the squirrels are often just thirsty, so keep a pan of water around for them to drink.
Also I think I’ve heard that they can develop a taste for the spoiled sugar water, which can turn to alchohol–happy little drunk squirrels! So remember to change your solution often so it won’t spoil.
Well, I don’t know if that’s going to work for me, but definitely worked for you!
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