community in Montana
Honey bee forage in Ovando, Montana
Estimated forage here is better than about 97% of sites in Montana. Spring, summer and fall all rank about the same against other Montana sites. Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 0.1 mi E, grown 3 of the last 5 years).
When is the honey flow in Ovando?
- First forage: Apr 1 (willows, dandelion)
- Main flow: May 16 to Sep 15, peaking early Aug (spotted and diffuse knapweed, native wildflowers, clovers: white, alsike and red)
- Season ends: Nov 30
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Ovando, 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 29.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): willows, native wildflowers, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
- Summer honey (July and August): spotted and diffuse knapweed, native wildflowers, snowberry, clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
- Fall honey (September to November): spotted and diffuse knapweed, clovers: white, alsike and red, sweet clovers, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
- Whole season (March to November): spotted and diffuse knapweed, native wildflowers, clovers: white, alsike and red, willows; 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
- Alfalfa: about 29 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi SE, blooms late Jul – early Sep (grown 4 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 Ovando
Mostly: Interior Western North American Temperate Ruderal Grassland; Northern Rocky Mountain Dry-Mesic Montane Mixed Conifer Forest; Inter-Mountain Basins Big Sagebrush Steppe.
Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.06 mi S; mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.1 mi SW.
How Ovando ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 81st | 43rd | 84th | 100th |
| Montana | 97th | 93rd | 90th | 99th |
| Middle Rockies | 98th | 96th | 96th | 98th |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
The national forage map around Ovando: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Helmville 14 mi · Seeley Lake 18 mi · Potomac 22 mi · Lincoln 23 mi · Drummond 24 mi · Twin Creeks 28 mi
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 Ovando (47.0139, -113.1588); 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.