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 38.9744, -77.1630
Estimated forage here is better than about 59% of sites in Maryland. Against other Maryland sites it stands out most in spring (94th percentile) and lowest in summer (31st). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), less than 0.1 mi away. 1 thing to watch (below).
Ranking
- Continental US: 78th percentile (spring 94th, summer 61st, fall 54th)
- Maryland: 59th percentile (spring 94th, summer 31st, fall 73rd)
- Northern Piedmont: 61st percentile (spring 91st, summer 23rd, fall 55th)
Percentile among 3,000 random land points across Maryland, scored the same way; land in general, not beekeepers' yards.
Season
- First forage: Feb 16 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
- Main flow: Mar 16 to Jun 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
- Fall flow: Jul 1 to Aug 31 — Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers
- Season ends: Sep 30
What the honey would be made of
- Spring honey (March to June): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber
- Summer honey (July and August): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber
- Fall honey (September to November): Garden flowers, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red; light amber
- Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar); extra light amber
Things to watch
- Heavily developed. About 56% 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.