community in Montana
Honey bee forage in The Silos, Montana
Estimated forage here is better than about 87% of sites in Montana. Against other Montana sites it stands out most in spring (96th percentile) and lowest in fall (26th). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 1.1 mi SE).
When is the honey flow in The Silos?
- First forage: Apr 1 (dandelion, arrowleaf balsamroot, native wildflowers)
- Main flow: May 1 to Jul 31, peaking late Jun (snowberry, native wildflowers, serviceberry)
- Fall flow: Aug 16 to Aug 31 (snowberry, spotted and diffuse knapweed)
- Season ends: Oct 31
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of The Silos, 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 15.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): snowberry, native wildflowers, serviceberry, dandelion; light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Summer honey (July and August): snowberry, spotted and diffuse knapweed, native wildflowers; light amber
- Fall honey (September to November): spotted and diffuse knapweed, green/yellow rabbitbrush, snowberry, rubber rabbitbrush; amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Whole season (March to November): snowberry, native wildflowers, serviceberry, spotted and diffuse knapweed; 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 62 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi SE, blooms early Jul – late Aug (grown 5 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 The Silos
Mostly: Open water; Inter-Mountain Basins Big Sagebrush Steppe; Northern Rocky Mountain Montane-Foothill Deciduous Shrubland.
Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.06 mi S; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.39 mi S.
How The Silos ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 66th | 49th | 79th | 73rd |
| Montana | 87th | 96th | 79th | 26th |
| Middle Rockies | 94th | 98th | 91st | 21st |
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 The Silos: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Winston 6 mi · Townsend 6 mi · Spokane Creek 12 mi · Radersburg 14 mi · Toston 18 mi · Montana City 19 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 The Silos (46.3985, -111.5866); 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.