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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 40.6220, -103.1949

Estimated forage here is better than about 93% of sites in Colorado. Against other Colorado sites it stands out most in spring (98th percentile) and lowest in fall (32nd). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 0.2 mi S, grown 3 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.3 mi SW, grown 1 of the last 5 years); millet (nearest 0.2 mi W, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: open water, 0.2 mi NE. 2 things to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 69th percentile (spring 68th, summer 74th, fall 63rd)
  • Colorado: 93rd percentile (spring 98th, summer 77th, fall 32nd)
  • High Plains: 89th percentile (spring 92nd, summer 72nd, fall 55th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Mar 1 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
  • Main flow: Apr 1 to Aug 15 — Alfalfa, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 15 — Garden flowers, Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Season ends: Sep 30

Bee crops nearby

  • Alfalfa: about 706 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.4 mi S, blooms early Jun – late Aug
  • Corn: about 322 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 590 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 36 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi S, blooms early Jun – late Aug
  • Corn: about 59 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 47 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi SW, blooms early Jun – late Aug

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Alfalfa; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Alfalfa, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers; extra 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): Alfalfa, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 53% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
  • Near a FEMA high-risk flood zone. A mapped high-risk flood zone (AE) 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.