Honey bee forage in Wilson Creek, Washington

When is the honey flow in Wilson Creek?

• First forage: Mar 1 (dandelion, willows)
• Main flow: Apr 1 to Aug 31, peaking early May (alfalfa, native wildflowers, clovers: white, alsike and red)
• Fall flow: Sep 16 to Sep 30 (alfalfa, green/yellow rabbitbrush)
• Season ends: Oct 31

Forage available to a colony through the year at the center of Wilson Creek, 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 May 1.

What the honey is made of

• Spring honey (March to June): clovers: white, alsike and red, dandelion, native wildflowers, willows; light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Summer honey (July and August): alfalfa, spotted and diffuse knapweed, native wildflowers, clovers: white, alsike and red; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Fall honey (September to November): alfalfa, green/yellow rabbitbrush, rubber rabbitbrush, spotted and diffuse knapweed; extra light amber, likely to set within weeks to a few months
• Whole season (March to November): alfalfa, native wildflowers, 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

• Alfalfa: about 155 acres in a typical year, nearest 0.8 mi W, blooms early Jun – early Oct (grown 5 of the last 5 years)
• Apples: about 4 acres in a typical year, nearest 1 mi W, blooms late 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 Wilson Creek

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

Nearest mapped water: mapped stream or canal (may be dry in late summer) 0 mi S; creek, wetland or wet meadow 0.11 mi NE.

Things to watch

• Bee crops nearby that are often sprayed. Apples: insecticides used on about 76% of acres in Washington (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); 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). 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 Wilson Creek ranks

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

Nearby

Krupp 6 mi · Coulee City 15 mi · Banks Lake South 16 mi · Soap Lake 17 mi · Moses Lake North 18 mi · Lakeview 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 Wilson Creek (47.423, -119.1177); 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.