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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 43.8342, -90.6264

Estimated forage here is better than about 73% of sites in Wisconsin. Against other Wisconsin sites it stands out most in fall (80th percentile) and lowest in summer (62nd). Biggest nearby bee crops: corn (right here, grown 2 of the last 5 years); soybeans (right here, grown 3 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 0.6 mi S). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), less than 0.1 mi away. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 80th percentile (spring 62nd, summer 84th, fall 75th)
  • Wisconsin: 73rd percentile (spring 64th, summer 62nd, fall 80th)
  • Driftless Area: 59th percentile (spring 81st, summer 43rd, fall 94th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Mar 16 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Main flow: May 1 to Aug 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Soybeans, Dandelion
  • Season ends: Oct 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Corn: about 59 acres in a typical year, nearest 0 mi N, blooms late Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 29 acres in a typical year, nearest 0 mi N, blooms late Jun – early Sep
  • Corn: about 181 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi W, blooms late Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 14 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.1 mi SW, blooms late Jun – early Sep
  • Corn: about 48 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi SE, blooms late Jul – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 39 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi SW, blooms late Jun – early Sep

What the honey would be made of

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