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 43.2442, -86.1125
Estimated forage here is better than about 64% of sites in Michigan. Against other Michigan sites it stands out most in fall (95th percentile) and lowest in summer (58th). Biggest nearby bee crops: corn (nearest 2.3 mi NE, grown 3 of the last 5 years); soybeans (nearest 2.3 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); cucumbers (nearest 1.1 mi NW, grown 3 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river, 0.35 mi W. 2 things to watch (below).
Ranking
- Continental US: 77th percentile (spring 73rd, summer 76th, fall 89th)
- Michigan: 64th percentile (spring 75th, summer 58th, fall 95th)
- Southern Michigan/Northern Indiana Drift Plains: 23rd percentile (spring 83rd, summer 14th, fall 98th)
Percentile among 3,000 random land points across Michigan, scored the same way; land in general, not beekeepers' yards.
Season
- First forage: Mar 16 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
- Main flow: Apr 16 to Jul 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
- Fall flow: Aug 16 to Sep 30 — Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster)
- Season ends: Oct 31
Bee crops nearby
- Corn: about 108 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
- Soybeans: about 42 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi NE, blooms late Jun – early Sep
- Cucumbers: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi NW, blooms late Jun – late Oct
- Cucumbers: about 23 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi NE, blooms late Jun – late Oct
- Alfalfa: about 50 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi NE, blooms late Jun – early Sep
- Cucumbers: about 16 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi E, blooms late Jun – late Oct
What the honey would be made of
- Spring honey (March to June): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Early trees (maple, willow, poplar); light amber
- Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber
- Fall honey (September to November): Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers; light amber
- Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster); light amber
Things to watch
- Heavily developed. About 66% 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. Cucumbers: insecticides used on about 36% 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.