Honey bee forage in Santa Cruz, California

When is the honey flow in Santa Cruz?

• First forage: Jan 1 (dandelion, maples, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Main flow: Jan 16 to Apr 30, peaking early Mar (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Fall flow: Jun 1 to Jun 15 (garden flowers, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Season ends: Sep 30

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Santa Cruz, 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 25.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, 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, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Fall honey (September to November): garden flowers, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); amber
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); 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

• Apples: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi SW, blooms late Feb – early Mar
• Citrus: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi W, blooms early Mar – early May
• Grapes: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi SW, blooms early Apr – late Apr

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 Santa Cruz

Mostly: Open water; California Coastal Redwood Forest; Developed, medium intensity.

Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.37 mi NW; mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.38 mi N.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 96% 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. Apples: insecticides used on about 77% 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 Santa Cruz ranks

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

Nearby

Pasatiempo 2 mi · Paradise Park 2 mi · Twin Lakes 3 mi · Live Oak 3 mi · Pleasure Point 4 mi · Capitola 4 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 Santa Cruz (36.9744, -122.0353); 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.