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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 47.8489, -111.7138

Estimated forage here is better than about 80% of sites in Montana. Against other Montana sites it stands out most in spring (97th percentile) and lowest in fall (30th). Biggest nearby bee crops: chickpeas (nearest 0.5 mi SE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); canola (nearest 1.5 mi N, grown 1 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 0.2 mi SE, grown 3 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: open water, 0.17 mi N. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 58th percentile (spring 52nd, summer 73rd, fall 75th)
  • Montana: 80th percentile (spring 97th, summer 66th, fall 30th)
  • Northwestern Glaciated Plains: 49th percentile (spring 95th, summer 40th, fall 36th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Apr 1 — Dandelion, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
  • Main flow: Apr 16 to Aug 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard)
  • Season ends: Oct 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Chickpeas: about 26 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi N, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Chickpeas: about 32 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.7 mi NW, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Chickpeas: about 17 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.5 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Aug
  • Canola: about 22 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi N, blooms early May – late Jul
  • Alfalfa: about 17 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi SE, blooms early Jul – early Sep
  • Alfalfa: about 19 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Sep

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Alfalfa, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Chick Peas; extra light amber
  • Fall honey (September to November): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion, Garden flowers; extra light amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Alfalfa; extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Lots of crops with little or no bee value. About 45% of the land within 3 miles is in crops bees get little from (such as wheat and other grains).
  • No digital FEMA flood map here. FEMA has no digital flood map for this area. Ask the county, and look for low ground near creeks before placing 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.