What's flowering for honey bees near Petoskey, MI (Northern Michigan / Lake Michigan shoreline, Petoskey - Little Traverse Bay (Northern Lower Michigan glacial moraine & lakeshore ecoregion)), month by month — 38 local nectar and pollen sources.
Open the interactive, printable calendar →← More Michigan bee forage calendars
| Plant | Scientific name | Category | Bloom months | Forage value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver Maple | Acer saccharinum | Trees | Apr | medium |
| Red Maple | Acer rubrum | Trees | Apr | medium |
| Pussy Willow | Salix discolor | Trees | Apr–May | high |
| American Elm | Ulmus americana | Trees | Apr | low |
| Sugar Maple | Acer saccharum | Trees | Apr–May | medium |
| Balsam Poplar/Aspen | Populus balsamifera / tremuloides | Trees | Apr | low |
| Dandelion | Taraxacum officinale | Wildflowers & Weeds | Apr–May | high |
| Serviceberry (Juneberry) | Amelanchier arborea | Trees | May | medium |
| Black Cherry | Prunus serotina | Trees | May | medium |
| Wild Apple/Crabapple | Malus spp. | Trees | May | medium |
| Tart/Sweet Cherry | Prunus cerasus / avium | Trees | May | high |
| White Ash | Fraxinus americana | Trees | May | low |
| Nannyberry | Viburnum lentago | Shrubs & Vines | May–Jun | medium |
| Honeysuckle (Bush) | Lonicera tatarica | Shrubs & Vines | May–Jun | medium |
| Dogwood (Gray/Red-osier) | Cornus spp. | Shrubs & Vines | May–Jun | medium |
| American Basswood (Linden) | Tilia americana | Trees | Jun–Jul | high |
| American Highbush Cranberry | Viburnum trilobum | Shrubs & Vines | Jun | low |
| Wild Raspberry | Rubus idaeus | Shrubs & Vines | Jun–Jul | high |
| Wild Blackberry | Rubus allegheniensis | Shrubs & Vines | Jun–Jul | medium |
| Common Elderberry | Sambucus canadensis | Shrubs & Vines | Jun–Jul | low |
| Wild Grape | Vitis riparia | Shrubs & Vines | Jun | low |
| White Clover | Trifolium repens | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Sep | high |
| Red Clover | Trifolium pratense | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Aug | medium |
| Alsike Clover | Trifolium hybridum | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Aug | high |
| Birdsfoot Trefoil | Lotus corniculatus | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Aug | medium |
| Alfalfa | Medicago sativa | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Aug | medium |
| Yellow Sweet Clover | Melilotus officinalis | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Aug | high |
| White Sweet Clover | Melilotus albus | Clover & Legumes | Jun–Sep | high |
| Canada Thistle | Cirsium arvense | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jun–Aug | medium |
| Common Milkweed | Asclepias syriaca | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jun–Jul | high |
| Bull Thistle | Cirsium vulgare | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jul–Aug | medium |
| Fireweed | Chamerion angustifolium | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jul–Aug | high |
| Purple Loosestrife | Lythrum salicaria | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jul–Aug | medium |
| Knapweed (Spotted) | Centaurea stoebe | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jul–Sep | high |
| Joe-Pye Weed | Eutrochium maculatum | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jul–Sep | medium |
| Wild Bergamot | Monarda fistulosa | Wildflowers & Weeds | Jul–Aug | medium |
| Canada Goldenrod | Solidago canadensis | Wildflowers & Weeds | Aug–Sep | high |
| New England Aster | Symphyotrichum novae-angliae | Wildflowers & Weeds | Aug–Oct | high |
A bee forage bloom calendar shows which nectar and pollen plants are blooming in a given area, month by month, so beekeepers can plan colony buildup, splits, and honey harvests around the local bloom.
Every calendar starts with your zip code's specific growing region — its climate, elevation, and local ecology. From there, we use AI trained on horticultural and beekeeping knowledge to work out which nectar and pollen plants actually grow there and when they typically bloom, the same kind of judgment call an experienced local beekeeping mentor or extension agent would make, just automated so any US zip code can get a calendar in minutes instead of years of local observation. Each calendar typically covers 25-40 plants across trees, shrubs and vines, clover and legumes, and wildflowers, plus the area's named honey flows. We keep the exact generation process under wraps, but the goal is always the same: real, locally-grounded bloom timing instead of generic national averages.
The region-specific bloom timing, honey flows, and beekeeping notes are produced by an AI system drawing on general horticultural, ecological, and beekeeping knowledge, applied to your area's specific climate and geography — rather than looked up from a single official bloom-timing database, since no such nationwide dataset exists at this level of local detail.
A nectar dearth (or dearth period) is a stretch of the year when little or no medium-to-high value forage is blooming. Colonies may need supplemental feeding during a dearth to avoid starvation or robbing behavior.
A honey flow (or nectar flow) is a period when nectar is abundant enough for a colony to produce surplus honey beyond what it needs to survive, often tied to a specific major regional bloom like clover or black locust.
Bloom timing is generated from regional climate and ecology data and is intended as a general planning reference. It may not perfectly match a specific microclimate, so it's worth cross-checking against your own field observations.
Yes. Enter any US zip code to get a free, printable bee forage bloom calendar — no signup required.