village in Illinois
Honey bee forage in Bay View Gardens, Illinois
Estimated forage here is better than about 1% of sites in Illinois. Against other Illinois sites it stands out most in fall (81st percentile) and lowest in summer (4th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 0.3 mi NE, grown 2 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.4 mi E, grown 4 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 1.0 mi S, grown 4 of the last 5 years).
When is the honey flow in Bay View Gardens?
- First forage: Feb 16 (early trees (maple, willow, poplar), dandelion)
- Main flow: Apr 16 to Aug 15, peaking early Jul (soybeans, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
- Season ends: Sep 30
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Bay View Gardens, 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 Apr 27.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, soybeans, early trees (maple, willow, poplar); light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Summer honey (July and August): soybeans, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
- Fall honey (September to November): garden flowers, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
- Whole season (March to November): soybeans, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar); 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
- Soybeans: about 316 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi SE, blooms early Jun – late Aug (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
- Corn: about 793 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Jul (grown 4 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 Bay View Gardens
Mostly: Open water; North-Central Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest and Woodland; North-Central Interior Maple-Basswood Forest.
Nearest mapped water: open water 0 mi S; pond, lake or river 0.07 mi SW.
How Bay View Gardens ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 51st | 55th | 69th | 43rd |
| Illinois | 1st | 69th | 4th | 81st |
| Interior River Valleys and Hills | 1st | 45th | 12th | 81st |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
The national forage map around Bay View Gardens: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Spring Bay 1 mi · Mossville 2 mi · Rome 4 mi · Germantown Hills 5 mi · Peoria Heights 5 mi · Peoria 6 mi
All towns in Illinois · 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 Bay View Gardens (40.8138, -89.528); 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.