Honey bee forage in Enumclaw, Washington

When is the honey flow in Enumclaw?

• First forage: Mar 1 (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, maples)
• Main flow: Mar 16 to Jun 30, peaking late Apr (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion)
• Fall flow: Jul 16 to Aug 31 (clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers)
• Season ends: Sep 30

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Enumclaw, 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 Apr 20.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, summer-flowering shrubs, maples; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Summer honey (July and August): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, garden flowers, summer-flowering shrubs; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Fall honey (September to November): garden flowers, clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, spotted and diffuse knapweed; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Whole season (March to November): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, summer-flowering shrubs, garden flowers; extra light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid

Nectar-source estimate (plants weighted by how much bees favor them), not a pollen analysis. Full honey estimate.

Bee crops within flight range

• Corn: about 12 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi SE, blooms late Jun – late Aug (grown 5 of the last 5 years)
• Blueberries: about 2 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.1 mi E, blooms early Apr – early May

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 Enumclaw

Mostly: Western Cool Temperate Pasture and Hayland; North Pacific Maritime Mesic-Wet Douglas-fir-Western Hemlock Forest; North Pacific Lowland Riparian Forest.

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0.24 mi SW; open water 0.5 mi E.

Things to watch

• Heavily developed. About 77% of the land within a mile is developed. Less room for forage, and more neighbors near the hives.
• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Blueberries: insecticides used on about 91% of acres in Washington (2025); Grapes (all types): insecticides used on about 34% of acres in Washington (2025); Grapes, wine type: insecticides used on about 34% of acres in Washington (2025); Grapes, table type: insecticides used on about 50% of surveyed US acres (2025); Grapes, raisin type: insecticides used on about 77% of surveyed US acres (2025); Caneberries: raspberries: insecticides used on about 99% of acres in Washington (2023); Caneberries: blackberries: insecticides used on about 60% of surveyed US acres (2017). 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 Enumclaw ranks

Percentiles among 3,000 random land points in each region, scored the same way: land in general, not beekeepers' apiaries.

Nearby

Buckley 3 mi · Prairie Heights 7 mi · South Prairie 7 mi · Wilkeson 8 mi · Black Diamond 8 mi · Prairie Ridge 8 mi

All towns in Washington · 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 Enumclaw (47.2022, -121.989); 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.