Bee forage check

How good is this spot for honey bees?

Enter an address or tap the map. You'll see which bee plants and crops are within flight range (about 3.7 miles, with nearer land counting more), when the honey flow comes and when there's a dearth, nearby water, a few things worth checking, and how the spot ranks against random sites in your state and across the country.

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Forage on the map in —

National map

The colors are the national forage map: every square kilometer of the lower 48, scored the same way. See the honey flow for your state and town, the best and worst spots we found, or how the scoring works.

Forage report for 34.1676, -86.0580

Estimated forage here is better than about 90% of sites in Alabama. Against other Alabama sites it stands out most in spring (97th percentile) and lowest in fall (69th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 0.3 mi S, grown 2 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.3 mi S, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, less than 0.1 mi away.

Ranking

Continental US: 78th percentile (spring 96th, summer 41st, fall 20th)
Alabama: 90th percentile (spring 97th, summer 88th, fall 69th)
Southwestern Appalachians: 94th percentile (spring 98th, summer 81st, fall 13th)

Percentile among 3,000 random land points across Alabama, scored the same way; land in general, not beekeepers' yards.

Season

First forage: Jan 16 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
Main flow: Feb 16 to May 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
Fall flow: Jun 16 to Jul 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Soybeans
Season ends: Aug 31

Bee crops nearby

Soybeans: about 10 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi S, blooms early May – early Jul
Soybeans: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.3 mi S, blooms early May – early Jul
Soybeans: about 7 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.7 mi W, blooms early May – early Jul
Corn: about 7 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi S, blooms late May – late Jun
Soybeans: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi W, blooms early May – early Jul
Corn: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.3 mi S, blooms late May – late Jun

What the honey would be made of

Spring honey (March to June): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Soybeans, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber
Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Soybeans; extra light amber
Fall honey (September to November): Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Garden flowers; amber
Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Soybeans, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber

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. Honey composition is a nectar-source estimate, not a pollen analysis. Benchmark 2026.5. How this works.