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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 48.2345, -101.2780

Estimated forage here is better than about 33% of sites in North Dakota. Against other North Dakota sites it stands out most in spring (98th percentile) and lowest in summer (22nd). Biggest nearby bee crops: canola (nearest 1.1 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); soybeans (nearest 1.1 mi NE, grown 2 of the last 5 years); alfalfa (nearest 1.1 mi NE, 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. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 80th percentile (spring 62nd, summer 82nd, fall 93rd)
  • North Dakota: 33rd percentile (spring 98th, summer 22nd, fall 24th)
  • Northern Glaciated Plains: 5th percentile (spring 97th, summer 3rd, fall 44th)

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

Season

  • First forage: Apr 1 — Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red
  • Main flow: Apr 16 to Aug 15 — Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 30 — Garden flowers, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Dandelion
  • Season ends: Oct 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Canola: about 29 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi NE, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 109 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi NE, blooms early Jul – early Sep
  • Canola: about 64 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.9 mi N, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Canola: about 16 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.2 mi E, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Canola: about 76 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi NE, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 726 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.3 mi E, blooms early Jul – early Sep

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Dandelion, Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); light amber
  • Summer honey (July and August): Clovers: white, alsike and red, Garden flowers, Dandelion, Canola; 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, Garden flowers, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber

Things to watch

  • Heavily developed. About 83% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
  • 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.