Arcadia Bees
Nucs Queens About Nuc guide Forage Contact Join waitlist

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 45.9242, -89.2601

Estimated forage here is better than about 14% of sites in Wisconsin. Against other Wisconsin sites it stands out most in fall (81st percentile) and lowest in summer (28th). Biggest nearby bee crops: clover and wildflowers (nearest 1.9 mi NW, grown 2 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 2.0 mi NW, grown 2 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 2.2 mi N, grown 2 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow, 0.13 mi W. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 50th percentile (spring 48th, summer 68th, fall 76th)
  • Wisconsin: 14th percentile (spring 33rd, summer 28th, fall 81st)
  • Northern Lakes and Forests: 35th percentile (spring 16th, summer 63rd, fall 95th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Apr 1 — Dandelion, Early trees (maple, willow, poplar), Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Main flow: May 1 to Jul 31 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Aug 16 to Sep 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers
  • Season ends: Oct 31

Bee crops nearby

  • Clover and wildflowers: about 133 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.9 mi NW, blooms late May – late Oct
  • Clover and wildflowers: about 34 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.6 mi NE, blooms late May – late Oct
  • Clover and wildflowers: about 18 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi NE, blooms late May – late Oct
  • Alfalfa: about 19 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.4 mi NE, blooms early Jul – late Sep
  • Clover and wildflowers: about 20 acres in a typical year, nearest 3.3 mi NE, blooms late May – late Oct
  • Alfalfa: about 22 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.5 mi NE, 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), 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, Clover/Wildflowers; extra light amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Summer-flowering shrubs, Garden flowers; extra 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.

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.