Honey bee forage in Big Stone Colony, Montana

When is the honey flow in Big Stone Colony?

• First forage: Apr 1 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion)
• Main flow: May 16 to Jul 31, peaking late Jun (canola, alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Fall flow: Aug 16 to Aug 31 (alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Season ends: Oct 15

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Big Stone Colony, 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 17.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): canola, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), peas, dandelion; white, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Summer honey (July and August): alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), canola, chick Peas; white, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Fall honey (September to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
• Whole season (March to November): canola, alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); white, likely to set within weeks to a few months

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

Bee crops within flight range

• Canola: about 23 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.1 mi NW, blooms early May – late Jul (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 337 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi W, blooms early Jul – late Aug (grown 5 of the last 5 years)
• Chickpeas: about 31 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi S, blooms early Jul – early Aug (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Peas: about 52 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi N, blooms late May – early Jul (grown 1 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 Big Stone Colony

Mostly: Northwestern Great Plains Mixedgrass Prairie; Northwestern Great Plains Shrubland; Winter Wheat.

Nearest mapped water: open water 0.15 mi E; pond, lake or river 0.16 mi E.

Things to watch

• Lots of crops with little or no bee value. About 36% of the land within 3 miles is in crops bees get little from (such as wheat and other grains).

How Big Stone Colony ranks

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

Nearby

Sand Coulee 2 mi · Tracy 3 mi · Centerville 3 mi · Stockett 4 mi · Gibson Flats 5 mi · Malmstrom AFB 7 mi

All towns in Montana · 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 Big Stone Colony (47.4001, -111.2092); 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.