Honey bee forage in Lake Arthur, New Mexico

When is the honey flow in Lake Arthur?

• First forage: Jan 16 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Main flow: Feb 16 to May 31, peaking late Mar (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Fall flow: Jun 16 to Jul 15 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), alfalfa)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Lake Arthur, 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 Mar 18.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, summer-flowering trees (locust, linden); extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), alfalfa, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
• Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), rabbitbrush, garden flowers; amber
• Whole season (March to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); extra 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 152 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.3 mi SW, blooms late Apr – early Jul (grown 5 of the last 5 years)
• Cotton: about 26 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi S, blooms late Jun – late Aug (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 51 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi SW, blooms late May – late Jun (grown 2 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 Lake Arthur

Mostly: Chihuahuan Mixed Salt Desert Scrub; Chihuahuan Creosotebush Desert Scrub; Apacherian-Chihuahuan Semi-Desert Shrub-Steppe.

Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.34 mi N; open water 0.61 mi SE.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Cotton: insecticides used on about 39% 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 Lake Arthur ranks

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

About 75% 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.

Nearby

Hagerman 8 mi · Morningside 10 mi · Artesia 11 mi · Dexter 14 mi · Atoka 15 mi · Midway 21 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 Lake Arthur (32.9994, -104.3637); 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.