Arcadia Bees
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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 what blooms within flight range (about 3.7 miles, with nearer land counting more) and when, the gaps in the season, 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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Forage report for 48.3903, -98.4303

Estimated forage here is better than about 98% of sites in North Dakota. Against other North Dakota sites it stands out most in summer (98th percentile) and lowest in spring (17th). Biggest nearby bee crops: canola (nearest 0.1 mi NW, grown 3 of the last 5 years); soybeans (right here, grown 3 of the last 5 years); sunflower (nearest 0.4 mi S, 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: 100th percentile (spring 7th, summer 100th, fall 100th)
  • North Dakota: 98th percentile (spring 17th, summer 98th, fall 92nd)
  • Northern Glaciated Plains: 98th percentile (spring 14th, summer 97th, fall 93rd)

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

Season

  • First forage: Jun 16 — Canola
  • Main flow: Jul 1 to Aug 15 — Canola, Soybeans
  • Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 15 — Soybeans, Sunflower
  • Season ends: Sep 15

Bee crops nearby

  • Canola: about 562 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.1 mi NW, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 2,872 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi S, blooms early Jul – early Sep
  • Sunflower: about 121 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.4 mi S, blooms late Jul – early Sep
  • Canola: about 213 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi SE, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Soybeans: about 94 acres in a typical year, nearest 0 mi , blooms early Jul – early Sep
  • Canola: about 30 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.3 mi W, blooms late Jun – early Aug

What the honey would be made of

  • Spring honey (March to June): Canola, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Dandelion; white
  • Summer honey (July and August): Canola, Soybeans, Sunflower; white
  • Fall honey (September to November): Soybeans, Sunflower, Dry Beans, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); light amber
  • Whole season (March to November): Canola, Soybeans, Sunflower, Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); white

Things to watch

  • 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.