town in Tennessee
Honey bee forage in Mason, Tennessee
Estimated forage here is better than about 99% of sites in Tennessee. Against other Tennessee sites it stands out most in spring (97th percentile) and lowest in fall (11th). Biggest nearby bee crops: soybeans (right here); cotton (nearest 0.4 mi NW, grown 1 of the last 5 years); corn (nearest 0.2 mi SW, grown 3 of the last 5 years).
When is the honey flow in Mason?
- First forage: Feb 16 (dandelion, early trees (maple, willow, poplar), clovers: white, alsike and red)
- Main flow: May 1 to Jul 15, peaking late May (soybeans)
- Season ends: Aug 31
Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Mason, from what grows within flight range (about 3.7 miles) and when it blooms here. Dates are the model's estimate for a typical year; the spring index for this spot falls on Mar 25.
What the honey is made of
- Spring honey (March to June): soybeans, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, roadside weeds (clover, dandelion, sweet clover, mustard); extra light amber, likely to set over some months
- Summer honey (July and August): soybeans, cotton; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Fall honey (September to November): fall wildflowers (goldenrod, aster), cotton, garden flowers; light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
- Whole season (March to November): soybeans, cotton, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
Nectar-source estimate (plants weighted by how much bees favor them), not a pollen analysis. Full honey estimate.
Bee crops within flight range
- Soybeans: about 5,457 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.6 mi SW, blooms early May – early Jul (grown 2 of the last 5 years)
- Cotton: about 202 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.7 mi N, blooms early Jul – late Aug (grown 4 of the last 5 years)
From USDA's crop maps for 2021–2025; fields rotate, so a crop counts by how often it was grown. Listing a field says nothing about its owner.
The land and water around Mason
Mostly: Soybeans; East Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Floodplain Forest; Eastern Warm Temperate Pasture and Hayland.
Nearest mapped water: creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.09 mi W; mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.13 mi W.
Things to watch
- Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Cotton: insecticides used on about 39% of surveyed US acres (2025). Figures are from USDA's Agricultural Chemical Use Survey, matched by crop type from the crop map. The survey counts any insecticide use in the crop year (not seed treatments) and doesn't say when; ask nearby growers about spray timing.
How Mason ranks
| Against random land in | Overall | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continental US | 98th | 97th | 90th | 13th |
| Tennessee | 99th | 97th | 95th | 11th |
| Mississippi Valley Loess Plains | 97th | 97th | 85th | 50th |
Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.
About 33% of the land here is scored with national averages for its vegetation type rather than measured plant cover, so the wild-plant part of this estimate is rougher than the crop part.
The national forage map around Mason: darker is more forage. Tap anywhere to check that exact spot.
Nearby
Braden 4 mi · Gallaway 7 mi · Stanton 9 mi · Brighton 12 mi · Covington 12 mi · Oakland 13 mi
All towns in Tennessee · National map · How the scoring works
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. The point is the Census Bureau's published center of Mason (35.4128, -89.5412); a yard a mile or two away can differ, so check your own spot. The FEMA flood map was not checked for this page. Benchmark 2026.5, built 2026-10-19. How this works · All sources.