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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 38.8032, -120.8932

Estimated forage here is better than about 73% of sites in California. Against other California sites it stands out most in spring (71st percentile) and lowest in summer and fall (51st). Biggest nearby bee crops: grapes (nearest 1.2 mi S); citrus (nearest 3.0 mi S); apples (nearest 3.2 mi SE). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, less than 0.1 mi away. 2 things to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 77th percentile (spring 95th, summer 27th, fall 25th)
  • California: 73rd percentile (spring 71st, summer 51st, fall 51st)
  • Central California Foothills and Coastal Mountains: 31st percentile (spring 25th, summer 34th, fall 28th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Jan 16 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
  • Main flow: Feb 1 to May 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Fall flow: Jun 1 to Jun 30 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
  • Season ends: Aug 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Grapes: about 13 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.2 mi S, blooms early Apr – early May
  • Grapes: about 9 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi S, blooms early Apr – early May
  • Grapes: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.2 mi S, blooms early Apr – early May
  • Grapes: about 34 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi SE, blooms early Apr – early May
  • Citrus: about 7 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi S, blooms late Mar – late May
  • Grapes: about 17 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.2 mi S, blooms early Apr – early May

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red, Summer-flowering shrubs, Snowberry; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Dandelion, 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), Clovers: white, alsike and red, Summer-flowering shrubs, Snowberry; extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Grapes (all types): insecticides used on about 58% of surveyed US acres (2021); Grapes, wine type: insecticides used on about 56% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, table type: insecticides used on about 50% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, raisin type: insecticides used on about 77% of surveyed US acres (2025); Citrus: grapefruit: insecticides used on about 63% of surveyed US acres (2025); Citrus: lemons: insecticides used on about 75% of surveyed US acres (2025); Citrus: tangerines: insecticides used on about 82% 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.
  • Near a FEMA high-risk flood zone. A mapped high-risk flood zone (A) 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.