city in Texas
Honey bee forage in Olton, Texas
Estimated forage here is better than about 89% of sites in Texas. Against other Texas sites it stands out most in summer (96th percentile) and lowest in spring (62nd). Biggest nearby bee crops: cotton (nearest 0.5 mi S, grown 2 of the last 5 years); sorghum (nearest 0.5 mi W, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.6 mi W, grown 2 of the last 5 years).
When is the honey flow in Olton?
- First forage: Feb 1 (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red)
- Main flow: Mar 1 to Aug 31, peaking late Jul (cotton, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
- Season ends: Sep 30
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Olton, 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 30.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), lindens / basswood; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Summer honey (July and August): cotton; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Fall honey (September to November): cotton, garden flowers, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Whole season (March to November): cotton, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra 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
- Cotton: about 5,082 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi S, blooms early Jul – early Sep (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 Olton
Mostly: Winter Wheat; Sorghum; Corn.
Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.41 mi NW; pond, lake or river 0.42 mi SW.
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 Olton ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 79th | 78th | 77th | 54th |
| Texas | 89th | 62nd | 96th | 68th |
| High Plains | 96th | 98th | 81st | 44th |
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 Olton: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Springlake 10 mi · Hart 14 mi · Edmonson 15 mi · Earth 16 mi · Spade 18 mi · Hale Center 18 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 Olton (34.1802, -102.137); 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.