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 35.3070, -78.7602

Estimated forage here is better than about 28% of sites in North Carolina. Against other North Carolina sites it stands out most in summer (53rd percentile) and lowest in fall (10th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 0.6 mi NW, grown 3 of the last 5 years); cotton (nearest 0.6 mi W, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.6 mi W, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, 0.23 mi W. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

Continental US: 56th percentile (spring 78th, summer 46th, fall 5th)
North Carolina: 28th percentile (spring 19th, summer 53rd, fall 10th)
Southeastern Plains: 55th percentile (spring 56th, summer 76th, fall 29th)

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

Season

First forage: Jan 16 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
Main flow: Mar 16 to Jul 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Soybeans, Summer-flowering trees (locust, linden)
Season ends: Aug 31

Bee crops nearby

Soybeans: about 63 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.9 mi SW, blooms early May – early Jul
Cotton: about 162 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi SW, blooms early Jul – late Aug
Soybeans: about 16 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi NW, blooms early May – early Jul
Soybeans: about 14 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi W, blooms early May – early Jul
Soybeans: about 14 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.7 mi SW, blooms early May – early Jul
Corn: about 30 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi W, blooms late May – late Jun

What the honey would be made of

Spring honey (March to June): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), Soybeans, Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber
Summer honey (July and August): Cotton, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Soybeans; extra 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), Soybeans, Summer-flowering trees (locust, linden), Cotton; extra light amber

Things to watch

Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Cotton: insecticides used on about 39% 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.

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.