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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 45.6347, -89.4307

Estimated forage here is better than about 25% of sites in Wisconsin. Against other Wisconsin sites it stands out most in fall (75th percentile) and lowest in summer (33rd). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (nearest 1.6 mi S, grown 2 of the last 5 years); soybeans (nearest 1.9 mi S, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 1.9 mi S, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, 0.2 mi NW. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 60th percentile (spring 59th, summer 71st, fall 73rd)
  • Wisconsin: 25th percentile (spring 54th, summer 33rd, fall 75th)
  • Northern Lakes and Forests: 53rd percentile (spring 31st, summer 74th, fall 93rd)

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)
  • Main flow: May 1 to Jul 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
  • Fall flow: Aug 1 to Aug 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Summer-flowering shrubs
  • Season ends: Oct 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Alfalfa: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 2 mi SE, blooms early Jul – late Sep
  • Soybeans: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.9 mi S, blooms early Jul – early Sep
  • Alfalfa: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.6 mi S, blooms early Jul – late Sep
  • Corn: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.9 mi S, blooms late Jul – late Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi E, blooms early Jul – late Sep
  • Alfalfa: about 6 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.4 mi N, blooms early Jul – late Sep

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Summer-flowering shrubs, Garden flowers; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Garden flowers; light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 56% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.

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.