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 40.4676, -74.6575
Estimated forage here is better than about 67% of sites in New Jersey. Against other New Jersey sites it stands out most in summer (76th percentile) and lowest in spring (66th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 0.4 mi N, grown 1 of the last 5 years); sweet corn (nearest 0.5 mi E, grown 2 of the last 5 years); sorghum (nearest 0.4 mi N, grown 3 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river, 0.12 mi SE. 2 things to watch (below).
Ranking
- Continental US: 74th percentile (spring 80th, summer 72nd, fall 63rd)
- New Jersey: 67th percentile (spring 66th, summer 76th, fall 72nd)
- Northern Piedmont: 45th percentile (spring 51st, summer 51st, fall 81st)
Percentile among 3,000 random land points across New Jersey, scored the same way; land in general, not beekeepers' yards.
Season
- First forage: Mar 1 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
- Main flow: Apr 1 to Jul 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Soybeans
- Fall flow: Aug 16 to Sep 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers
- Season ends: Sep 30
Bee crops nearby
- Soybeans: about 149 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi E, blooms early Jun – late Aug
- Sweet corn: about 38 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Jul
- Sorghum: about 19 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi N, blooms late Jun – late Jul
- Soybeans: about 9 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi N, blooms early Jun – late Aug
- Soybeans: about 11 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi W, blooms early Jun – late Aug
- Soybeans: about 25 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.7 mi W, blooms early Jun – late Aug
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): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Soybeans, Dandelion, Garden flowers; extra light amber
- Fall honey (September to November): Garden flowers, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber
- Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Soybeans, Garden flowers; extra light amber
Things to watch
- Heavily developed. About 55% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
- Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Sweet Corn: insecticides used on about 44% of surveyed US acres (2024); Watermelons: insecticides used on about 38% of surveyed US acres (2024). 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.
- 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.