Honey bee forage in Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona

When is the honey flow in Yuma Proving Ground?

• First forage: Jan 1 (dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar), clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Main flow: Jan 16 to Apr 15, peaking early Feb (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, citrus)
• Season ends: Dec 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Yuma Proving Ground, 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 7.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, citrus, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): garden flowers, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), rabbitbrush; amber
• Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), rabbitbrush, garden flowers; amber
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, citrus, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering shrubs; 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

• Citrus: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi SW, blooms late Feb – late Apr
• Alfalfa: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi SW, blooms late Mar – late May (grown 4 of the last 5 years)
• Cotton: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi W, 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 Yuma Proving Ground

Mostly: Sonora-Mojave Creosotebush-White Bursage Desert Scrub; Barren; North American Warm Desert Bedrock Cliff and Outcrop.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.25 mi NW; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.53 mi SW.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Citrus: grapefruit: insecticides used on about 63% of surveyed US acres (2025); Citrus: lemons: insecticides used on about 75% of surveyed US acres (2025); Citrus: tangerines: insecticides used on about 82% of surveyed US acres (2025); 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 Yuma Proving Ground ranks

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

About 64% 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

Martinez Lake 8 mi · Buckshot 9 mi · El Prado Estates 12 mi · Fortuna Foothills 14 mi · Avenue B and C 16 mi · Donovan Estates 18 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 Yuma Proving Ground (32.8652, -114.4369); 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.