Honey bee forage in Pink Hill, North Carolina

When is the honey flow in Pink Hill?

• First forage: Jan 16 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
• Main flow: May 1 to Jun 30, peaking late May (soybeans)
• Season ends: Aug 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Pink Hill, 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 Mar 18.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): soybeans, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, summer-flowering trees (locust, linden); extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Summer honey (July and August): soybeans, cotton, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), garden flowers; 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): soybeans, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; 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

• Soybeans: about 98 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi W, blooms early May – early Jul (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 62 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi SW, blooms late May – late Jun (grown 3 of the last 5 years)
• Grapes: about 31 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi SE, blooms late Apr – late May

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 Pink Hill

Mostly: Southeastern Native Ruderal Forest; Southeastern North American Temperate Forest Plantation; Other Hay/Non Alfalfa.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.04 mi N; pond, lake or river 0.04 mi NE.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Grapes (all types): insecticides used on about 58% of surveyed US acres (2021); Grapes, wine type: insecticides used on about 56% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, table type: insecticides used on about 50% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, raisin type: insecticides used on about 77% 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 Pink Hill ranks

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

About 46% 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

Deep Run 6 mi · Potters Hill 7 mi · Beulaville 9 mi · Seven Springs 13 mi · Jackson Heights 13 mi · Kenansville 14 mi

All towns in North Carolina · 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 Pink Hill (35.0562, -77.7436); 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.