Honey bee forage in Desert Palms, California

When is the honey flow in Desert Palms?

• First forage: Jan 1 (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Main flow: Feb 1 to Apr 15, peaking early Feb (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Fall flow: Jun 1 to Jun 15 (garden flowers, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Season ends: Dec 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Desert Palms, 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 9.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers, lindens / basswood; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): garden flowers, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Fall honey (September to November): garden flowers, rabbitbrush; dark amber
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, garden flowers, dandelion, lindens / basswood; 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 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi E, blooms late Feb – late Apr
• Alfalfa: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi E, blooms late Mar – late May (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.5 mi SE, blooms late Apr – early Jun (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 Desert Palms

Mostly: Developed, medium intensity; Barren; Sonora-Mojave Creosotebush-White Bursage Desert Scrub.

Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.26 mi NW; open water 0.47 mi SE.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 67% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
• 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). 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 Desert Palms ranks

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

Nearby

Bermuda Dunes 3 mi · Thousand Palms 4 mi · Palm Desert 5 mi · Indio 5 mi · Indio Hills 5 mi · Indian Wells 6 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 Desert Palms (33.7791, -116.2982); 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.