Honey bee forage in Wilroads Gardens, Kansas

When is the honey flow in Wilroads Gardens?

• First forage: Feb 16 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
• Main flow: Mar 16 to Jul 31, peaking late Jun (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), alfalfa, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Wilroads 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 16.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), alfalfa, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), alfalfa, 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, clovers: white, alsike and red; amber, likely to set over some months
• Whole season (March to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), alfalfa, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red; 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

• Alfalfa: about 198 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi S, blooms late May – early Aug (grown 3 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 103 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi NE, blooms late Jun – late Jul (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
• Sorghum: about 157 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.7 mi W, blooms late Jun – late Jul (grown 2 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 Wilroads Gardens

Mostly: Central Mixedgrass Prairie Grassland; Winter Wheat; Northern & Central Plains Ruderal & Planted Grassland.

Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.05 mi NW; mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.07 mi SW.

How Wilroads Gardens ranks

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

About 42% 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

Fort Dodge 1 mi · Wright 5 mi · Dodge City 6 mi · Ford 11 mi · Spearville 13 mi · Ensign 17 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 Wilroads Gardens (37.7153, -99.9268); 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.