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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 38.5186, -121.4599

Estimated forage here is better than about 71% of sites in California. Against other California sites it stands out most in fall (76th percentile) and lowest in spring (55th). Biggest nearby bee crops: almonds (nearest 3.3 mi S); clover and wildflowers (nearest 3.3 mi S, grown 1 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 3.5 mi NE, grown 3 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), 0.42 mi S. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 74th percentile (spring 82nd, summer 35th, fall 41st)
  • California: 71st percentile (spring 55th, summer 61st, fall 76th)
  • Central California Valley: 26th percentile (spring 24th, summer 67th, fall 88th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Jan 1 — Dandelion, Maples
  • Main flow: Feb 1 to Apr 30 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Jun 1 to Jul 15 — Garden flowers, Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Season ends: Sep 30

Bee crops nearby

  • Almonds: about 11 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi S, blooms early Feb – late Mar
  • Clover and wildflowers: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi S, blooms early Mar – early Jul
  • Almonds: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.6 mi S, blooms early Feb – late Mar
  • Alfalfa: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.5 mi NE, blooms late Apr – early Jun
  • Clover and wildflowers: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.4 mi S, blooms early Mar – early Jul

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Lindens / basswood; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Garden flowers, Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Garden flowers
  • Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Lindens / basswood; extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 98% 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.