community in Arizona
Honey bee forage in Three Points, Arizona
Estimated forage here is better than about 46% of sites in Arizona. Against other Arizona sites it stands out most in spring (53rd percentile) and lowest in fall (32nd). Expect a dearth in late Jun.
When is the honey flow in Three Points?
- First forage: Jan 1 (dandelion, native wildflowers)
- Main flow: Feb 1 to Apr 30, peaking late Feb (clovers: white, alsike and red, native wildflowers, dandelion)
- Dearth: Jun 16 to Jun 30
- Fall flow: May 16 to Jun 15 (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, spotted and diffuse knapweed)
- Season ends: Oct 31
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Three Points, 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 21.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, native wildflowers, dandelion, spring-flowering shrubs; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
- Summer honey (July and August): rabbitbrush, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, garden flowers; amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Fall honey (September to November): rabbitbrush, garden flowers; dark amber
- Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, rabbitbrush, native wildflowers, dandelion; 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 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi NW, blooms early Jun – late 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 Three Points
Mostly: Sonoran Paloverde-Mixed Cacti Desert Scrub; Sonora-Mojave Creosotebush-White Bursage Desert Scrub; Developed-Roads.
Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.34 mi W; pond, lake or river 1.83 mi E.
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 Three Points ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 6th | 27th | 4th | 28th |
| Arizona | 46th | 53rd | 34th | 32nd |
| Sonoran Basin and Range | 73rd | 71st | 78th | 51st |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
About 92% 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 Three Points: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Valencia West 11 mi · Tucson Estates 13 mi · Drexel Heights 15 mi · Picture Rocks 18 mi · Tucson Mountains 20 mi · Summit 20 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 Three Points (32.0593, -111.2866); 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.