Honey bee forage in Rapid Valley, South Dakota

When is the honey flow in Rapid Valley?

• First forage: Mar 16 (dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard))
• Main flow: Apr 16 to Sep 15, peaking late May (roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Rapid Valley, 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 15.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, native wildflowers; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Summer honey (July and August): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), dandelion; extra light amber, likely to set over some months
• Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; light amber, likely to set over some months
• Whole season (March to November): roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); extra light amber, likely to set over some months

Nectar-source estimate (plants weighted by how much bees favor them), not a pollen analysis. Full honey estimate.

Bee crops within flight range

• Sunflower: about 77 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi E, blooms early Jul – early Sep (grown 1 of the last 5 years)
• Alfalfa: about 97 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi SW, blooms late Jun – early Sep (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
• Sorghum: about 117 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi E, blooms late Jul – early Sep (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 Rapid Valley

Mostly: Northwestern Great Plains Mixedgrass Prairie; Northern & Central Plains Ruderal & Planted Grassland; Northwestern Great Plains Riparian Herbaceous.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.03 mi NE; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.04 mi N.

How Rapid Valley ranks

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

About 53% 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

Green Valley 2 mi · Box Elder 4 mi · Ashland Heights 5 mi · Rapid City 5 mi · Caputa 8 mi · Colonial Pine Hills 10 mi

All towns in South Dakota · 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 Rapid Valley (44.0673, -103.1223); 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.