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 41.8010, -71.3583
Estimated forage here is better than about 50% of sites in Rhode Island. Against other Rhode Island sites it stands out most in fall (70th percentile) and lowest in spring (31st). Biggest nearby bee crops: corn (nearest 2.0 mi SE, grown 3 of the last 5 years); sweet corn (nearest 2.0 mi SE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); squash (nearest 2.5 mi E, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), 0.29 mi SE. 2 things to watch (below).
Ranking
- Continental US: 42nd percentile (spring 60th, summer 51st, fall 61st)
- Rhode Island: 50th percentile (spring 31st, summer 66th, fall 70th)
- Northeastern Coastal Zone: 37th percentile (spring 27th, summer 44th, fall 60th)
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 Sep 15 — Garden flowers, Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
- Season ends: Sep 30
Bee crops nearby
- Corn: about 46 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi E, blooms early Jul – early Aug
- Corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
- Sweet corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
- Squash: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Oct
- Pumpkins: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Oct
- Corn: about 12 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
What the honey would be made of
- Spring honey (March to June): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Lindens / basswood; extra 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, Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, 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 88% 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); Squash: insecticides used on about 71% of surveyed US acres (2024); Pumpkins: insecticides used on about 75% 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.