Honey bee forage in Lochbuie, Colorado

When is the honey flow in Lochbuie?

• First forage: Mar 1 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Main flow: Apr 1 to Aug 31, peaking early May (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Season ends: Sep 30

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Lochbuie, from what grows within flight range (about 3.7 miles) and when it blooms here. Dates are the model's estimate for a typical year; the spring index for this spot falls on May 1.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, alfalfa; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), alfalfa, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Fall honey (September to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), garden flowers, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
• Whole season (March to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, alfalfa; extra light amber, likely to set over some months

Nectar-source estimate (plants weighted by how much bees favor them), not a pollen analysis. Full honey estimate.

Bee crops within flight range

• Corn: about 162 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Sep (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 140 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.2 mi NE, blooms early Jun – late Aug (grown 3 of the last 5 years)

From USDA's crop maps for 2021–2025; fields rotate, so a crop counts by how often it was grown. Listing a field says nothing about its owner.

The land and water around Lochbuie

Mostly: Western Great Plains Shortgrass Prairie; Northern & Central Plains Ruderal & Planted Grassland; Developed, open space (parks, large lots, lawns).

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.13 mi NW; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.81 mi E.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Pumpkins: insecticides used on about 75% of surveyed US acres (2024). Figures are from USDA's Agricultural Chemical Use Survey, matched by crop type from the crop map. The survey counts any insecticide use in the crop year (not seed treatments) and doesn't say when; ask nearby growers about spray timing.

How Lochbuie ranks

Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.

Nearby

Brighton 5 mi · Fort Lupton 7 mi · Aristocrat Ranchettes 7 mi · Todd Creek 8 mi · Hudson 9 mi · Commerce City 9 mi

All towns in Colorado · National map · How the scoring works

An estimate from public maps (USDA crop maps 2021–2025 averaged, LANDFIRE vegetation), not a survey of the ground. Maps can't see garden plantings, understory density, other beekeepers' hives, or this year's weather. The point is the Census Bureau's published center of Lochbuie (40.0091, -104.7265); a yard a mile or two away can differ, so check your own spot. The FEMA flood map was not checked for this page. Benchmark 2026.5, built 2026-10-19. How this works · All sources.