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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 45.9618, -111.5782

Estimated forage here is better than about 65% of sites in Montana. Against other Montana sites it stands out most in fall (79th percentile) and lowest in summer (56th). Biggest nearby bee crops: alfalfa (right here, grown 1 of the last 5 years); mustard (nearest 1.6 mi NW, grown 1 of the last 5 years); canola (nearest 1.7 mi NW, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), less than 0.1 mi away.

Ranking

  • Continental US: 45th percentile (spring 32nd, summer 68th, fall 94th)
  • Montana: 65th percentile (spring 76th, summer 56th, fall 79th)
  • Middle Rockies: 79th percentile (spring 91st, summer 62nd, fall 73rd)

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

Season

  • First forage: Apr 1 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Arrowleaf balsamroot, Native wildflowers
  • Main flow: May 16 to Sep 15 — Native wildflowers, Spotted and diffuse knapweed, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
  • Fall flow: Oct 1 to Oct 15 — Spotted and diffuse knapweed, Green/yellow rabbitbrush, Rubber rabbitbrush
  • Season ends: Nov 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Alfalfa: about 213 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi W, blooms early Jul – late Aug
  • Mustard: about 128 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.8 mi NW, blooms early Jun – late Jul
  • Canola: about 43 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.7 mi NW, blooms early May – late Jul
  • Chickpeas: about 620 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Lentils: about 237 acres in a typical year, nearest 2 mi W, blooms late Jun – late Jul
  • Chickpeas: about 73 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.8 mi SW, blooms early Jul – early Aug

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Native wildflowers, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Arrowleaf balsamroot, Weedy mustards; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Spotted and diffuse knapweed, Native wildflowers, Alfalfa, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Spotted and diffuse knapweed, Green/yellow rabbitbrush, Rubber rabbitbrush, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Native wildflowers, Spotted and diffuse knapweed, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Alfalfa; light amber

Things to watch

  • Flood map not checked. FEMA's flood map service didn't answer. Check it directly.

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.