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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 42.0973, -76.0614

Estimated forage here is better than about 70% of sites in New York. Against other New York sites it stands out most in fall (96th percentile) and lowest in spring (60th). Biggest nearby bee crops: corn (nearest 3.3 mi N, grown 2 of the last 5 years); soybeans (nearest 3.4 mi N, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: open water, less than 0.1 mi away. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 64th percentile (spring 66th, summer 69th, fall 76th)
  • New York: 70th percentile (spring 60th, summer 68th, fall 96th)
  • Northern Allegheny Plateau: 91st percentile (spring 94th, summer 81st, fall 97th)

Percentile among 3,000 random land points across New York, 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 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Aug 16 to Sep 30 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers
  • Season ends: Oct 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Corn: about 16 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 8 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.4 mi N, blooms late Jun – early Sep
  • Corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.6 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 1 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.5 mi N, blooms early Jul – early 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, Dandelion, Garden flowers, Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers, 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 79% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
  • No digital FEMA flood map here. FEMA has no digital flood map for this area. Ask the county, and look for low ground near creeks before placing 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.