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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 40.9504, -75.9724

Estimated forage here is better than about 22% of sites in Pennsylvania. Against other Pennsylvania sites it stands out most in fall (80th percentile) and lowest in spring (14th). Biggest nearby bee crops: sweet corn (nearest 3.1 mi S, grown 1 of the last 5 years); soybeans (nearest 3.7 mi SE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 3.7 mi SE, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river, 0.42 mi NE. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 32nd percentile (spring 52nd, summer 49th, fall 59th)
  • Pennsylvania: 22nd percentile (spring 14th, summer 35th, fall 80th)
  • Ridge and Valley: 8th percentile (spring 3rd, summer 61st, fall 94th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Mar 16 — Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Main flow: Apr 16 to Jul 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Aug 1 to Aug 31 — Garden flowers, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Season ends: Sep 30

Bee crops nearby

  • Sweet corn: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.1 mi S, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.7 mi SE, blooms late Jun – late Aug
  • Corn: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.7 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 13 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.7 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 10 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.7 mi N, blooms late Jun – late Aug

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar); light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Dandelion, Summer-flowering shrubs; 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, Garden flowers, Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 73% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.

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.