Honey bee forage in Atwood, Kansas

When is the honey flow in Atwood?

• First forage: Mar 1 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Main flow: Apr 1 to Aug 15, peaking early Jul (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, alfalfa)
• Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 15 (fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Atwood, 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 28.

What the honey is made of

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

• Corn: about 102 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi NE, blooms late Jun – late Jul (grown 4 of the last 5 years)
• Sorghum: about 122 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.9 mi N, blooms late Jun – late Jul (grown 3 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 49 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi SW, blooms early Jun – late Aug (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 Atwood

Mostly: Central Mixedgrass Prairie Grassland; Western Great Plains Shortgrass Prairie; Winter Wheat.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.06 mi N; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.26 mi W.

How Atwood ranks

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

About 50% 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

Ludell 5 mi · Herndon 15 mi · McDonald 18 mi · Bird City 26 mi · Oberlin 27 mi · Gem 28 mi

All towns in Kansas · 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 Atwood (39.8099, -101.0419); 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.