Honey bee forage in Watkins Glen, New York

When is the honey flow in Watkins Glen?

• First forage: Mar 1 (dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar))
• Main flow: Apr 16 to Jul 31, peaking early May (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Fall flow: Aug 16 to Aug 31 (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, alfalfa)
• Season ends: Oct 15

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Watkins Glen, 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 9.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar), roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Summer honey (July and August): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, alfalfa, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Fall honey (September to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), garden flowers; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), garden flowers; 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 19 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Aug (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
• Corn: about 189 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.8 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Aug (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 67 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi E, blooms late Jun – early Sep (grown 3 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 Watkins Glen

Mostly: Eastern Cool Temperate Pasture and Hayland; Appalachian Northern Hardwood Forest; Open water.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.17 mi SE; pond, lake or river 0.17 mi SE.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Apples: 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 Watkins Glen ranks

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

About 47% 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

Montour Falls 2 mi · Burdett 3 mi · Odessa 5 mi · Millport 8 mi · Pine Valley 10 mi · Dundee 11 mi

All towns in New York · 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 Watkins Glen (42.3805, -76.867); 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.