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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 43.0677, -98.5308

Estimated forage here is better than about 51% of sites in South Dakota. Against other South Dakota sites it stands out most in spring (99th percentile) and lowest in summer and fall (41st). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (nearest 1.6 mi NW, grown 2 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (right here, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 1.6 mi N, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, 0.27 mi SE.

Ranking

  • Continental US: 71st percentile (spring 70th, summer 72nd, fall 82nd)
  • South Dakota: 51st percentile (spring 99th, summer 41st, fall 41st)
  • Northwestern Glaciated Plains: 60th percentile (spring 99th, summer 38th, fall 48th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Mar 16 — Dandelion, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Main flow: Apr 1 to Aug 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 30 — Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Season ends: Oct 31

Bee crops nearby

  • Soybeans: about 131 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi NW, blooms late Jun – late Aug
  • Soybeans: about 102 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi N, blooms late Jun – late Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 11 acres in a typical year, nearest 0 mi NE, blooms late Jun – late Aug
  • Corn: about 104 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Corn: about 122 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.8 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 155 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi N, blooms late Jun – late Aug

What the honey would be made of

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

Things to watch

  • 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.