Honey bee forage in Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland

When is the honey flow in Aberdeen Proving Ground?

• First forage: Feb 16 (early trees (maple, willow, poplar), roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Main flow: Mar 16 to Jun 30, peaking late Apr (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
• Fall flow: Jul 16 to Aug 15 (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster))
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Aberdeen Proving Ground, 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 19.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), early trees (maple, willow, poplar), summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), summer-flowering shrubs, clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), garden flowers, clovers: white, alsike and red; light amber, likely to set over some months
• Whole season (March to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), summer-flowering shrubs, early trees (maple, willow, poplar); 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

• Soybeans: about 41 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.8 mi N, blooms early Jun – early Aug (grown 3 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 29 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.8 mi N, 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 Aberdeen Proving Ground

Mostly: Open water; Southeastern Native Ruderal Forest; Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Hardwood Forest.

Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow 0 mi S; mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.21 mi W.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Sweet Corn: insecticides used on about 44% of surveyed US acres (2024). 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 Aberdeen Proving Ground ranks

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

About 79% 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

Perryman 4 mi · Aberdeen 5 mi · Riverside 6 mi · Havre de Grace 6 mi · Betterton 7 mi · Abingdon 7 mi

All towns in Maryland · 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 Aberdeen Proving Ground (39.4542, -76.1335); 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.