community in New Mexico
Honey bee forage in Canova, New Mexico
Estimated forage here is better than about 47% of sites in New Mexico. Against other New Mexico sites it stands out most in summer (67th percentile) and lowest in spring (44th). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 0.6 mi SE); peaches (nearest 0.7 mi S).
When is the honey flow in Canova?
- First forage: Mar 1 (dandelion, native wildflowers, early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
- Main flow: Apr 1 to Aug 31, peaking early May (alfalfa, spring-flowering shrubs, clovers: white, alsike and red)
- Fall flow: Sep 16 to Oct 31 (green/yellow rabbitbrush, rubber rabbitbrush, rabbitbrush)
- Season ends: Oct 31
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Canova, 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 Apr 27.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): spring-flowering shrubs, clovers: white, alsike and red, native wildflowers, dandelion; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Summer honey (July and August): alfalfa, spotted and diffuse knapweed, green/yellow rabbitbrush, rubber rabbitbrush; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Fall honey (September to November): green/yellow rabbitbrush, rubber rabbitbrush, rabbitbrush, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); dark amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Whole season (March to November): alfalfa, spring-flowering shrubs, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; light amber, 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
- Alfalfa: about 15 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi SE, blooms early Jun – 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 Canova
Mostly: Southern Rocky Mountain Pinyon-Juniper Woodland; Inter-Mountain Basins Big Sagebrush Shrubland; Inter-Mountain Basins Semi-Desert Shrub-Steppe.
Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.16 mi NE; open water 0.63 mi SE.
Things to watch
- Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Peaches: insecticides used on about 86% of surveyed US acres (2025). Figures are from USDA's Agricultural Chemical Use Survey, matched by crop type from the crop map. The survey counts any insecticide use in the crop year (not seed treatments) and doesn't say when; ask nearby growers about spray timing.
How Canova ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 14th | 34th | 32nd | 63rd |
| New Mexico | 47th | 44th | 67th | 51st |
| Arizona/New Mexico Plateau | 75th | 77th | 83rd | 44th |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
About 56% 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 Canova: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Lyden 2 mi · Velarde 2 mi · Los Luceros 5 mi · Dixon 6 mi · La Villita 6 mi · Alcalde 7 mi
All towns in New Mexico · 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 Canova (36.1678, -105.9888); 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.