Honey bee forage in Sunsites, Arizona

When is the honey flow in Sunsites?

• First forage: Jan 16 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion)
• Main flow: Feb 1 to Jun 30, peaking late Mar (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Sunsites, 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 11.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), dandelion; 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), cotton, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
• Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), garden flowers; amber
• Whole season (March to November): 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

Nectar-source estimate (plants weighted by how much bees favor them), not a pollen analysis. Full honey estimate.

Bee crops within flight range

• Sunflower: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi N, blooms early May – late Jun (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 96 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi NE, blooms late Apr – late Jun (grown 4 of the last 5 years)
• Sorghum: about 50 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.8 mi E, blooms late 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 Sunsites

Mostly: North American Warm Desert Ruderal & Planted Scrub; Chihuahuan Loamy Plains Desert Grassland; Chihuahuan Mixed Desert and Thornscrub.

Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.07 mi SW; open water 0.29 mi SW.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Cotton: insecticides used on about 39% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes (all types): insecticides used on about 58% of surveyed US acres (2021); Grapes, wine type: insecticides used on about 56% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, table type: insecticides used on about 50% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, raisin type: insecticides used on about 77% 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 Sunsites ranks

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

About 57% 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

Dragoon 13 mi · Sunizona 13 mi · Elfrida 20 mi · Tombstone 21 mi · Willcox 21 mi · St. David 23 mi

All towns in Arizona · 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 Sunsites (31.9417, -109.8408); 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.