Here in Houston, we typically see them from about April to October. The really big #s typically come through from April-June (heading north) and August-September (heading south). The main thing we try to avoid is keeping the feeders up so long in the fall that we end up keeping the birds around beyond the time when they will be able to head south to finish migrating with flowers still blooming south of us.

If you keep the feeders up too long, you can keep them hanging around and will end up having to keep the feeders up all winter to give them something to eat since nothing else will be blooming. We typically take ours down after a cold front in mid to late october, (since they can use the north wind to help them head south) but what time is best for you will depend on how early it gets cold and how long plants stay in bloom around you.

Putting one up now is very helpful, as it gives birds migrating south a chance to stock up on energy. What we typically see is waves of them coming through with each front. One group leaves, and there is a lull for a day or so, then the next group arrives. Depending on the year, we often have 4-5 feeders and 15-20 hummers hanging around in mid september waiting on the next cold front.