Honey bee forage in Sunland Estates, Washington

When is the honey flow in Sunland Estates?

• First forage: Mar 16 (dandelion, arrowleaf balsamroot, maples)
• Main flow: Apr 1 to May 15, peaking late Apr (dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, native wildflowers)
• Fall flow: Jun 1 to Aug 31 (native wildflowers, spotted and diffuse knapweed, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Sunland Estates, 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 24.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): native wildflowers, dandelion, clovers: white, alsike and red, apples; light amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Summer honey (July and August): spotted and diffuse knapweed, native wildflowers, green/yellow rabbitbrush, rubber rabbitbrush; amber, mixed: part of it sets quickly, part stays liquid
• Fall honey (September to November): green/yellow rabbitbrush, rubber rabbitbrush, spotted and diffuse knapweed, garden flowers; dark amber
• Whole season (March to November): native wildflowers, dandelion, spotted and diffuse knapweed, clovers: white, alsike and red; 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

• Apples: about 710 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.5 mi E, blooms late Apr – early May
• Grapes: about 477 acres in a typical year, nearest 2.2 mi E, blooms late May – late Jun
• Cherries: about 18 acres in a typical year, nearest 1.4 mi E, blooms early Apr – late Apr

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 Sunland Estates

Mostly: Inter-Mountain Basins Big Sagebrush Shrubland; Inter-Mountain Basins Big Sagebrush Steppe; Columbia Plateau Scabland Shrubland.

Nearest mapped water: pond, lake or river 0.19 mi S; open water 0.21 mi S.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Apples: insecticides used on about 76% 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); Cherries, sweet: insecticides used on about 93% of acres in Washington (2025); Cherries, tart: insecticides used on about 45% 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 Sunland Estates ranks

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

Nearby

George 8 mi · Vantage 9 mi · Crescent Bar 10 mi · Quincy 14 mi · Beverly 17 mi · Schwana 18 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 Sunland Estates (47.0741, -120.0283); 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.