Best Nectar-Producing Trees for Bees: U.S. Bloom and Honey Guide

Reviewed by Daniel M. · Last Updated October 7, 2026 · How we review

The best nectar-producing trees for honey bees in the United States are the ones that can fill a honey super: tuliptree, basswood (American linden), sourwood and tupelo in the East, and honey mesquite and citrus in the Southwest and Florida. Red maple, willows, redbud, serviceberry and fruit trees bloom earlier and mainly feed spring buildup.

This page covers trees only. For flowers and shrubs, see the best plants for honey production in the USA.

Key Takeaways

• Red maple and willow mostly feed early brood; tuliptree, basswood, sourwood and tupelo make honey.
• Scale decides honey. USDA’s beekeeping handbook says one colony usually needs one to several acres of abundant bloom.
• Bloom dates shift with elevation: in North Carolina, tulip poplar opens about five weeks later in the mountains than on the coast.
• Trees are slow. USDA NRCS says tulip poplar takes 12 to 20 years to bloom.
• Skip invasive trees bees love, such as Callery (Bradford) pear, tree-of-heaven, Chinese tallow and mimosa.
• Black locust is native to the Appalachians and Ozarks but listed as noxious or invasive in several other states.

Table of Contents

• Honey Trees vs. Buildup Trees
• U.S. Nectar Tree Reference Table
• Late Winter and Early Spring Bloomers
• The Trees Behind America’s Tree Honeys
• Bloom Timing by Region
• Trees to Skip or Plant With Caution
• Planting Trees That Feed Your Bees
• Frequently Asked Questions
• The Bottom Line

Honey Trees vs. Buildup Trees

Some trees bloom while colonies are still small. USDA’s Beekeeping in the United States (Agriculture Handbook 335) lists maple, elm, willow, wild cherry and wild plum among plants that yield nectar and pollen “at a time when brood rearing is important.” Others bloom when colonies are strong enough to store a surplus: the handbook names sourwood, tulip poplar and tupelo among Southeast honey sources, and basswood and black locust in the North. It is also blunt about scale:

“A few ornamental flowers or trees on a city lot are of small value to an apiary or a colony of bees. From one to several acres of abundant flowers are usually necessary to provide sufficient nectar for one colony.”

E. Oertel, USDA Agricultural Research Service, “Nectar and Pollen Plants,” Beekeeping in the United States, Agriculture Handbook 335 (1967)

Most of your honey will come from trees already growing within foraging range of the hive. Plant to fill gaps in that calendar.

Planting is also where many tree projects fail. In this Michigan State University webinar, certified arborist and beekeeper Mike Connor covers mistakes from planting to pruning.

The 81-minute webinar was published by MSU Beekeeping in February 2023. MSU’s description says a large share of the tree problems Connor diagnoses are preventable or were caused by whoever planted or cared for the tree. Watch it before buying nursery stock.

U.S. Nectar Tree Reference Table

Each row traces to the sources in the key below. Bloom months are typical and shift with latitude, elevation and weather. Zones are USDA hardiness zones.

Key: NRCS = USDA NRCS Plant Guides. AH = USDA Agriculture Handbook 335 (1967). AL = Alabama Extension, Nectar and Pollen Producing Plants of Alabama. UF = UF/IFAS, Florida Honey Bee Plants. NCSU = NC State Extension Plant Toolbox. NCSBA = NC State Beekeepers Association. UMN = University of Minnesota Season Watch. AZ = Arizona Extension AZ2047. TTU = Texas Tech Plant Resources. OSU = Oregon State Landscape Plants.

Late Winter and Early Spring Bloomers

Red maple is often the first tree honey bees work: Alabama Extension lists its bloom from January to March, and the NRCS plant guide calls it “one of the first trees to flower in the spring.” Its value is brood, not honey.

Willows overlap with red maple; the UF/IFAS north Florida calendar runs them from January to March. Redbud, serviceberry and fruit trees follow. For fruit you also want pollinated, see planning fruit tree pollination with your own bees.

The Trees Behind America’s Tree Honeys

Tuliptree (tulip poplar)

Alabama Extension names yellow-poplar, or tuliptree, among the state’s primary nectar plants and calls its honey “high-quality, deep-amber, full-flavored.” The NRCS guide describes the flowers as “heavy nectar producers” opening from late April to June, but adds: “It takes tulip poplar 12-20 years to bloom.”

Black locust

Black locust blooms from late April to mid-June, but only briefly: about two weeks in the North Carolina mountains and ten days in the piedmont. The USDA NRCS black locust plant guide places its native range in the Appalachians and Ozarks and lists it as a noxious weed in Massachusetts, Maine, Minnesota and Wisconsin and an invasive plant in California, Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey and Oregon, among others.

Basswood (American linden)

“Basswood is a prolific nectar producer and pollination by honeybees results in a choice grade of honey,” says the NRCS guide. It flowers from May into July, depending on latitude; Minnesota’s Season Watch puts it in June and July. American basswood is Tilia americana; littleleaf linden (T. cordata) is European. See our basswood honey guide.

Tupelo

Blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica) grows from Maine to central Florida, and the NRCS calls it “a good honey tree.” Famous tupelo honey, though, comes from white or Ogeechee tupelo (N. ogeche) of the coastal Southeast. USDA’s handbook describes Apalachicola tupelo honey as “famous for its high levulose content and nongranulating characteristics.” Both bloom in April and May in north Florida.

Sourwood

Sourwood blooms in June and July, after most trees finish. NC State notes its honey “is highly sought after,” and the 1967 USDA handbook called it “almost water white” and slow to granulate. More in our sourwood honey guide.

Bloom Timing by Region

A national bloom month can be weeks off for your hives. By the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association averages, red maple starts January 20 on the coastal plain and March 5 in the mountains, and tulip poplar opens April 17 on the coast but May 25 in the mountains.

• Southeast and Florida: red maple and willow from January, citrus in March and April, then tupelo, tuliptree, gallberry and cabbage palm. See our orange blossom honey guide.
• Northeast and Upper Midwest: willows and maples for buildup, then basswood. USDA names basswood and black locust, with the clovers, among honey sources in both regions.
• Southwest: per Arizona Extension, citrus in February and March, then the main April flow from mesquite and catclaw acacia. Mesquite honey crystallizes rapidly.
• Pacific Northwest: bigleaf maple flowers in April or May. See beekeeping in the Pacific Northwest.

As Alabama Extension advises, record local bloom dates every year; a hive scale shows when each flow starts and stops.

Trees to Skip or Plant With Caution

“While honeybees will forage these plants, intentionally planting these is not recommended.”

James E. Tew, Stephen Enloe, Nancy Loewenstein and Kerry Smith, on Chinese privet and tallowtree, “Nectar and Pollen Producing Plants of Alabama: A Guide for Beekeepers,” Alabama Cooperative Extension System

• Callery pear, including ‘Bradford’: invasive across the Southeast, per NC State. The USDA National Invasive Species Information Center reports it has been illegal to sell, grow or plant in Ohio since January 1, 2023; South Carolina banned nursery sales from October 1, 2024.
• Tree-of-heaven: invasive in natural areas in 30 states, per NC State.
• Chinese tallow (popcorn tree): a June nectar source on the UF/IFAS calendar, but invasive in Florida, Texas, Georgia, North Carolina and other states.
• Mimosa: invasive in North Carolina and other parts of the Southeast.
• Norway maple: invasive in several northeastern states. NC State’s advice: “Please choose a native maple.”
• Golden rain tree and bee-bee tree: the first is on a National Park Service Mid-Atlantic invasive list; NC State warns the second “can become somewhat invasive.”
• Black locust and honey mesquite outside their native ranges: check your state list first.
• California buckeye: native, but its nectar is toxic to honey bees, per NC State and USDA’s handbook.

Planting Trees That Feed Your Bees

• Plant for your gap. If bees go hungry in early summer, basswood or sourwood helps more than another spring tree. See our nectar dearth solutions.
• Plant in groups. Given USDA’s acres-per-colony figure, a grove or windbreak of one species beats single specimens.
• Buy the right species. White tupelo makes tupelo honey; American basswood is native, littleleaf linden is not.

For understory plants, see the best U.S. native plants for pollinators and forage plants for maximum honey yields.

Frequently Asked Questions

What tree makes the best honey?

Sourwood and tupelo are among the most prized U.S. tree honeys; USDA’s 1967 handbook said sourwood sold “at far above the price of other honeys.” Basswood is the classic northern tree honey.

What are good flowering trees for bees in a small yard?

Redbud, serviceberry, crabapple and other fruit trees, and American holly. They feed bees in spring but will not make a honey crop alone.

Is black locust good for bees?

Bees work it heavily during a short bloom, but it is invasive in several states outside the Appalachians and Ozarks.

Are Bradford pear trees good for bees?

Bees visit them, but Callery pear is invasive and banned from sale in Ohio and South Carolina. Plant serviceberry or crabapple instead.

Can a few yard trees produce honey?

Rarely. USDA says one colony usually needs one to several acres of abundant bloom. Yard trees help colonies build up and bridge gaps.

The Bottom Line

Learn which honey trees already grow near your hives, then plant natives for the months they miss. For timing, see managing nectar flows in U.S. climate zones.