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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 45.8513, -87.0282

Estimated forage here is better than about 47% of sites in Michigan. Against other Michigan sites it stands out most in fall (92nd percentile) and lowest in spring (40th). Biggest nearby bee crops: clover and wildflowers (nearest 2.0 mi W, grown 1 of the last 5 years); sorghum (nearest 2.6 mi SW, grown 1 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 2.8 mi SW, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, 0.16 mi NE. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 69th percentile (spring 59th, summer 76th, fall 83rd)
  • Michigan: 47th percentile (spring 40th, summer 60th, fall 92nd)
  • Northern Lakes and Forests: 76th percentile (spring 31st, summer 92nd, 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 — Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Dandelion
  • Main flow: May 1 to Jul 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar)
  • Fall flow: Aug 16 to Aug 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers
  • Season ends: Oct 31

Bee crops nearby

  • Clover and wildflowers: about 68 acres in a typical year, nearest 2 mi W, blooms late May – late Oct
  • Clover and wildflowers: about 11 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.7 mi W, blooms late May – late Oct
  • Sorghum: about 12 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi SW, blooms late Jul – late Aug
  • Alfalfa: about 10 acres in a typical year, nearest 3 mi NW, blooms early Jul – late Sep
  • Corn: about 5 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi SW, blooms late Jul – late Aug
  • Dry beans: about 3 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.9 mi SW, blooms early Aug – 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), Garden flowers; light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Summer-flowering shrubs, Dandelion, Garden flowers; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, 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 67% 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.