Honey bee forage in Tryon, North Carolina

When is the honey flow in Tryon?

• First forage: Jan 16 (dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
• Main flow: Feb 16 to May 15, peaking late Mar (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Season ends: Aug 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Tryon, 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 25.

What the honey is made of

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

• Apples: about 11 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi SE, blooms late Mar – early Apr
• Corn: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.2 mi N, blooms late May – late Jun (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Squash: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.2 mi NE, blooms early May – early Sep (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Soybeans: about 12 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi S, blooms early May – early 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 Tryon

Mostly: Southern Piedmont Dry Oak Forest; Southern Appalachian Oak Forest; Southern and Central Appalachian Cove Forest.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.07 mi SE; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.43 mi S.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 54% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Apples: insecticides used on about 77% of surveyed US acres (2025); Squash: insecticides used on about 71% 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 Tryon ranks

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

About 60% 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

Columbus 3 mi · Saluda 6 mi · Dana 10 mi · East Flat Rock 11 mi · Flat Rock 13 mi · Barker Heights 13 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 Tryon (35.2088, -82.2379); 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.