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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 42.5975, -98.0354

Estimated forage here is better than about 63% of sites in Nebraska. Against other Nebraska sites it stands out most in spring (98th percentile) and lowest in summer (54th). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 0.4 mi W, grown 3 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.4 mi NW, grown 1 of the last 5 years); soybeans (nearest 0.4 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, 0.23 mi NW. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 76th percentile (spring 62nd, summer 80th, fall 81st)
  • Nebraska: 63rd percentile (spring 98th, summer 54th, fall 61st)
  • Northwestern Glaciated Plains: 66th percentile (spring 98th, summer 53rd, fall 46th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Mar 16 — Dandelion, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
  • Main flow: Apr 16 to Aug 31 — Alfalfa, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Season ends: Oct 31

Bee crops nearby

  • Alfalfa: about 154 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi W, blooms early Jun – late Aug
  • Corn: about 226 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 87 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi NE, blooms early Jun – late Aug
  • Soybeans: about 31 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi NE, blooms late Jun – late Aug
  • Corn: about 61 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 38 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi SW, blooms early Jun – late Aug

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Alfalfa; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Alfalfa, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Soybeans; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red; amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Alfalfa, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Dandelion; extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Near a FEMA high-risk flood zone. A mapped high-risk flood zone (A) 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.