town in Texas
Honey bee forage in Ransom Canyon, Texas
Estimated forage here is better than about 85% of sites in Texas. Against other Texas sites it stands out most in summer (96th percentile) and lowest in spring (41st). Biggest nearby bee crops: cotton (nearest 0.5 mi S, grown 3 of the last 5 years); sorghum (nearest 1.0 mi S, grown 1 of the last 5 years); sunflower (nearest 1.5 mi NW, grown 1 of the last 5 years).
When is the honey flow in Ransom Canyon?
- First forage: Feb 1 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red)
- Main flow: Jul 1 to Aug 31, peaking early Jul (cotton)
- Season ends: Sep 30
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Ransom Canyon, 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 22.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion, summer-flowering trees (locust, linden); extra light amber, likely to set over some months
- Summer honey (July and August): cotton; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), garden flowers; amber
- Whole season (March to November): cotton, clovers: white, alsike and red, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion; 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 12,248 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi NE, blooms early Jul – late Aug (grown 5 of the last 5 years)
- Sorghum: about 32 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi S, blooms late May – late Jun (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
- Sunflower: about 29 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.9 mi S, blooms early May – early Jul (grown 1 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 Ransom Canyon
Mostly: Cotton; Western Great Plains Shortgrass Prairie; Sorghum.
Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.04 mi SW; open water 0.04 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 Ransom Canyon ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 76th | 68th | 79th | 40th |
| Texas | 85th | 41st | 96th | 48th |
| High Plains | 94th | 91st | 84th | 30th |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
About 33% 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 Ransom Canyon: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Buffalo Springs Lake 1 mi · Slaton 6 mi · Idalou 9 mi · Lubbock 12 mi · Lorenzo 13 mi · Wilson 15 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 Ransom Canyon (33.5303, -101.6853); 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.