community in Texas
Honey bee forage in Los Arrieros, Texas
Estimated forage here is better than about 19% of sites in Texas. Against other Texas sites it ranks highest in fall (33rd percentile) and lowest in summer (10th). Expect a dearth from early Jul to early Dec.
When is the honey flow in Los Arrieros?
- First forage: Jan 1 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion, native wildflowers)
- Main flow: Jan 1 to Apr 15, peaking early Feb (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering trees (locust, linden))
- Dearth: Jul 1 to Dec 15
- Fall flow: May 1 to May 31 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
- Season ends: Dec 31
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Los Arrieros, 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 Feb 4.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), clovers: white, alsike and red, summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
- Summer honey (July and August): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), rabbitbrush, garden flowers, cotton; amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Fall honey (September to November): rabbitbrush, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), garden flowers; dark amber
- Whole season (March to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), rabbitbrush, 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
- Cotton: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi W, blooms late May – early Jul (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 Los Arrieros
Mostly: Tamaulipan Mixed Deciduous Thornscrub; Unmapped; Tamaulipan Calcareous Thornscrub.
Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.42 mi E; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.48 mi NE.
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 Los Arrieros ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 24th | 50th | 5th | 29th |
| Texas | 19th | 22nd | 10th | 33rd |
| Southern Texas Plains | 77th | 75th | 67th | 29th |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
About 90% 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 Los Arrieros: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Salineño North 1 mi · La Minita 1 mi · Jardin de San Julian 1 mi · La Loma de Falcon 2 mi · Salineño 2 mi · Indio 2 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 Los Arrieros (26.5158, -99.0845); 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.