Arcadia Bees
Nucs Queens About Nuc guide Forage Contact Join waitlist

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 35.2120, -79.6287

Estimated forage here is better than about 17% of sites in North Carolina. Against other North Carolina sites it stands out most in fall (79th percentile) and lowest in spring (24th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 0.5 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.5 mi NE, grown 2 of the last 5 years); dry beans (nearest 2.4 mi E, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), 0.12 mi SW. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 50th percentile (spring 80th, summer 29th, fall 38th)
  • North Carolina: 17th percentile (spring 24th, summer 25th, fall 79th)
  • Southeastern Plains: 42nd percentile (spring 62nd, summer 60th, fall 92nd)

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 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion
  • Main flow: Mar 16 to Jun 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Summer-flowering shrubs, Summer-flowering trees (locust, linden)
  • Fall flow: Jul 1 to Jul 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Summer-flowering shrubs, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster)
  • Season ends: Oct 31

Bee crops nearby

  • Soybeans: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi NE, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Corn: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi NE, blooms late May – late Jun
  • Soybeans: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.4 mi S, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 9 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi E, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.9 mi SE, blooms early May – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 2 mi SE, blooms early May – early Jul

What the honey would be made of

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

Things to watch

  • Near a FEMA high-risk flood zone. A mapped high-risk flood zone (AE) is within about 300 m. Check FEMA's map for the exact spot.

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.