Honey bee forage in Biggs, California

When is the honey flow in Biggs?

• First forage: Jan 16 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), prunes)
• Main flow: Feb 1 to Mar 31, peaking late Feb (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Fall flow: Apr 16 to May 15 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, alfalfa)
• Season ends: Jul 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Biggs, 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 3.

What the honey is made of

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

• Alfalfa: about 72 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi N, blooms late Apr – late Jun (grown 4 of the last 5 years)
• Almonds: about 68 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.8 mi S, blooms early Feb – late Mar
• Prunes: about 38 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.4 mi E, blooms early Feb – late Feb

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 Biggs

Mostly: Walnuts; Rice.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.26 mi S; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.37 mi SE.

Things to watch

• Lots of crops with little or no bee value. About 46% of the land within 3 miles is in crops bees get little from (such as wheat and other grains).
• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Prunes: insecticides used on about 54% of surveyed US acres (2025); Plums: insecticides used on about 75% 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 Biggs ranks

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

Nearby

Gridley 3 mi · Richvale 6 mi · Thermalito 9 mi · Live Oak 10 mi · Oroville 10 mi · South Oroville 10 mi

All towns in California · 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 Biggs (39.4115, -121.7114); 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.