Honey bee forage in Santa Rosa Valley, California

When is the honey flow in Santa Rosa Valley?

• First forage: Jan 1 (dandelion, maples, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Main flow: Jan 16 to Apr 30, peaking late Feb (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, citrus)
• Season ends: Sep 30

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Santa Rosa Valley, 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 13.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, citrus, dandelion, summer-flowering shrubs; 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, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); amber
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, citrus, dandelion, garden flowers; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid

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 62 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi NW, blooms early Mar – 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 Rosa Valley

Mostly: Southern California Coastal Scrub; Developed, low intensity (houses and yards); Developed, medium intensity.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.23 mi N; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.44 mi E.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 61% 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 Santa Rosa Valley ranks

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

About 38% 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

Moorpark 3 mi · Thousand Oaks 4 mi · Casa Conejo 5 mi · Somis 6 mi · Camarillo 8 mi · Lake Sherwood 8 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 Rosa Valley (34.2459, -118.9018); 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.