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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.

Or tap the map. We don't store your address or exact location.

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 35.1936, -79.4022

Estimated forage here is better than about 88% of sites in North Carolina. Against other North Carolina sites it stands out most in spring (98th percentile) and lowest in summer (58th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 2.1 mi E, grown 2 of the last 5 years); sorghum (nearest 3.0 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 3.0 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: open water, 0.3 mi SW. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 83rd percentile (spring 97th, summer 50th, fall 44th)
  • North Carolina: 88th percentile (spring 98th, summer 58th, fall 89th)
  • Southeastern Plains: 93rd percentile (spring 98th, summer 78th, fall 96th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Feb 1 — Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • 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, Garden flowers
  • Season ends: Sep 30

Bee crops nearby

  • Soybeans: about 22 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.1 mi NE, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi E, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.9 mi NE, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.6 mi E, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Sorghum: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi NE, blooms late May – late Jun
  • Sorghum: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.1 mi NE, blooms late May – late Jun

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Summer-flowering shrubs, Garden flowers; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Garden flowers, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 73% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
  • Flood map not checked. FEMA's flood map service didn't answer. Check it directly.

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.