Honey bee forage in Hudson, New Hampshire

When is the honey flow in Hudson?

• First forage: Mar 16 (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Main flow: Apr 16 to Jul 15, peaking early May (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Fall flow: Aug 1 to Aug 31 (garden flowers, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Season ends: Sep 30

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Hudson, 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 May 10.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, garden flowers, lindens / basswood; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Summer honey (July and August): clovers: white, alsike and red, garden flowers, dandelion, summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Fall honey (September to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• 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

• Sweet corn: about 43 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.9 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Aug (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 17 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Aug (grown 3 of the last 5 years)
• Strawberries: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi NW, blooms early Apr – late Jun (grown 1 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 Hudson

Mostly: Developed, low intensity (houses and yards); Central Appalachian Dry Oak Forest; Developed, medium intensity.

Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.09 mi W; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.16 mi NE.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 80% 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. 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 Hudson ranks

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

Nearby

Nashua 3 mi · Londonderry 7 mi · East Merrimack 8 mi · Derry 11 mi · Amherst 12 mi · Milford 13 mi

All towns in New Hampshire · 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 Hudson (42.7638, -71.432); 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.