Honey bee forage in New Miami Colony, Montana

When is the honey flow in New Miami Colony?

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

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of New Miami 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 24.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): mustard, canola, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion; white, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Summer honey (July and August): mustard, alfalfa, chick Peas, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); white, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Whole season (March to November): mustard, alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), canola; 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

• Mustard: about 49 acres in a typical year, nearest 0 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Jul (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Chickpeas: about 68 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.3 mi S, blooms late Jul – early Aug (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 65 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Sep (grown 3 of the last 5 years)
• Canola: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi S, blooms early May – late 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 New Miami Colony

Mostly: Northwestern Great Plains Mixedgrass Prairie; Inter-Mountain Basins Mat Saltbush Shrubland; Northern & Central Plains Ruderal & Planted Grassland.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.02 mi N; open water 0.04 mi W.

Things to watch

• Lots of crops with little or no bee value. About 37% of the land within 3 miles is in crops bees get little from (such as wheat and other grains).

How New Miami Colony ranks

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

Nearby

Pondera Colony 7 mi · Valier 8 mi · Pendroy 8 mi · Dupuyer 9 mi · Birch Creek Colony 10 mi · Kingsbury Colony 12 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 New Miami Colony (48.1912, -112.2804); 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.