Honey bee forage in Somersworth, New Hampshire

When is the honey flow in Somersworth?

• First forage: Mar 1 (early trees (maple, willow, poplar), dandelion)
• Main flow: Apr 16 to Jul 15, peaking late May (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
• Fall flow: Aug 1 to Aug 15 (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers)
• Season ends: Oct 15

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Somersworth, 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 14.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, early trees (maple, willow, poplar), summer-flowering shrubs; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Summer honey (July and August): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers, 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, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar), garden flowers; 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

• Corn: about 16 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi W, blooms late Jul – early Aug (grown 5 of the last 5 years)
• Sweet corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.7 mi E, blooms late Jul – early Aug (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 Somersworth

Mostly: Central Appalachian Dry Oak-Pine Forest; Central Appalachian Dry Pine Forest; North-Central Appalachian Acidic Swamp.

Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.05 mi NW; mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.19 mi SW.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 57% 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 Somersworth ranks

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

About 50% 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

Dover 5 mi · Rochester 5 mi · Durham 8 mi · Milton 12 mi · Newmarket 13 mi · Farmington 14 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 Somersworth (43.2535, -70.8879); 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.