town in Colorado
Honey bee forage in Marble, Colorado
Estimated forage here is better than about 88% of sites in Colorado. Against other Colorado sites it stands out most in summer (91st percentile) and lowest in fall (50th). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 2.8 mi W, grown 3 of the last 5 years).
When is the honey flow in Marble?
- First forage: Apr 1 (willows, dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
- Main flow: May 16 to Aug 15, peaking early Jun (snowberry, summer-flowering shrubs, willows)
- Season ends: Oct 31
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Marble, 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 Jun 6.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): willows, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, early trees (maple, willow, poplar); amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Summer honey (July and August): snowberry, summer-flowering shrubs, clovers: white, alsike and red, native wildflowers; extra light amber, likely to stay liquid a long time
- Fall honey (September to November): snowberry, spotted and diffuse knapweed, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Whole season (March to November): snowberry, willows, dandelion, summer-flowering shrubs; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
Nectar-source estimate (plants weighted by how much bees favor them), not a pollen analysis. Full honey estimate.
Bee crops within flight range
- Alfalfa: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.8 mi W, blooms late Jul – late Sep (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 Marble
Mostly: Rocky Mountain Subalpine Dry-Mesic Spruce-Fir Forest and Woodland; Rocky Mountain Aspen Forest and Woodland; Rocky Mountain Gambel Oak-Mixed Montane Shrubland.
Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.09 mi SE; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.11 mi S.
How Marble ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 63rd | 39th | 80th | 73rd |
| Colorado | 88th | 59th | 91st | 50th |
| Southern Rockies | 89th | 92nd | 88th | 54th |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
About 68% of the land here is scored with national averages for its vegetation type rather than measured plant cover, so the wild-plant part of this estimate is rougher than the crop part.
The national forage map around Marble: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Redstone 8 mi · Snowmass Village 17 mi · Mount Crested Butte 17 mi · Somerset 18 mi · Crested Butte 18 mi · Aspen 21 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 Marble (39.0717, -107.1907); 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.