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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Forage on the map in —

National map

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 45.5253, -96.9344

Estimated forage here is better than about 85% of sites in South Dakota. Against other South Dakota sites it stands out most in fall (98th percentile) and lowest in summer (73rd). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (right here, grown 3 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.2 mi E, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river, less than 0.1 mi away.

Ranking

Continental US: 94th percentile (spring 49th, summer 92nd, fall 97th)
South Dakota: 85th percentile (spring 90th, summer 73rd, fall 98th)
Northern Glaciated Plains: 51st percentile (spring 88th, summer 32nd, fall 58th)

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

Season

First forage: Apr 1 — Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
Main flow: Jul 1 to Aug 31 — Soybeans
Season ends: Oct 15

Bee crops nearby

Soybeans: about 289 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.3 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Sep
Corn: about 525 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi E, blooms late Jul – late Aug
Soybeans: about 67 acres in a typical year, nearest 0 mi , blooms early Jul – early Sep
Soybeans: about 1,796 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Sep
Soybeans: about 72 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.3 mi W, blooms early Jul – early Sep
Soybeans: about 1,678 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.3 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Sep

What the honey would be made of

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

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.