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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.

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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 38.3036, -76.5451

Estimated forage here is better than about 55% of sites in Maryland. Against other Maryland sites it stands out most in spring (92nd percentile) and lowest in summer (31st). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 0.8 mi S, grown 3 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.8 mi S, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), 0.17 mi SW. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 77th percentile (spring 94th, summer 61st, fall 50th)
  • Maryland: 55th percentile (spring 92nd, summer 31st, fall 59th)
  • Southeastern Plains: 84th percentile (spring 90th, summer 85th, fall 98th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Feb 1 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
  • Main flow: Mar 16 to Jun 30 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Jul 16 to Jul 31 — Soybeans, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Season ends: Sep 30

Bee crops nearby

  • Soybeans: about 23 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi S, blooms late May – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 44 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.4 mi NW, blooms late May – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 35 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi S, blooms late May – early Aug
  • Corn: about 17 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi S, blooms early Jun – early Jul
  • Soybeans: about 42 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.7 mi N, blooms late May – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 34 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.7 mi NW, blooms late May – early Aug

What the honey would be made of

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

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 68% 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.