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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 41.5588, -71.3014

Estimated forage here is better than about 64% of sites in Rhode Island. Against other Rhode Island sites it stands out most in fall (84th percentile) and lowest in spring (42nd). Biggest nearby bee crops: corn (nearest 0.4 mi SE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); squash (nearest 1.3 mi SE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); grapes (nearest 2.5 mi SE). Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river, 0.11 mi W. 2 things to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 48th percentile (spring 62nd, summer 57th, fall 65th)
  • Rhode Island: 64th percentile (spring 42nd, summer 77th, fall 84th)
  • Northeastern Coastal Zone: 48th percentile (spring 36th, summer 56th, fall 72nd)

Percentile among 3,000 random land points across Rhode Island, 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 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Aug 1 to Aug 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers
  • Season ends: Sep 30

Bee crops nearby

  • Corn: about 27 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi S, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.3 mi E, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 36 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.4 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Squash: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.3 mi SE, blooms late Jun – late Oct

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, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Dandelion, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar); light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 54% 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. Squash: insecticides used on about 71% of surveyed US acres (2024); 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); Pumpkins: insecticides used on about 75% of surveyed US acres (2024); Sweet Corn: insecticides used on about 44% 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.