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 48.8977, -105.1645

Estimated forage here is better than about 33% of sites in Montana. Against other Montana sites it ranks highest in summer (48th percentile) and lowest in fall (19th). Biggest nearby bee crops: lentils (nearest 0.2 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); chickpeas (nearest 1.0 mi NE, grown 1 of the last 5 years); canola (nearest 1.6 mi NW, grown 1 of the last 5 years). Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer), 0.13 mi NE. 1 thing to watch (below).

Ranking

  • Continental US: 26th percentile (spring 21st, summer 64th, fall 68th)
  • Montana: 33rd percentile (spring 34th, summer 48th, fall 19th)
  • Northwestern Glaciated Plains: 13th percentile (spring 30th, summer 26th, fall 26th)

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), Dandelion
  • Main flow: Jun 1 to Aug 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Lentils, Peas
  • Fall flow: Sep 1 to Sep 15 — Roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard), Alfalfa, Fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster)
  • Season ends: Oct 31

Bee crops nearby

  • Lentils: about 23 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi NE, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Chickpeas: about 156 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi NE, blooms late Jul – early Aug
  • Canola: about 117 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.1 mi NE, blooms late Jun – early Aug
  • Peas: about 96 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi W, blooms early Jun – early Jul
  • Peas: about 15 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.2 mi NE, blooms early Jun – early Jul
  • Lentils: about 50 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.7 mi SE, blooms late Jun – early Aug

What the honey would be made of

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

Things to watch

  • Lots of crops with little or no bee value. About 44% 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.