The Low Country Native Irish Honeybee Association

23/05/2026

Grafting for our queen raring 👑

06/05/2026

The new season of inspections begin. Native Irish Honeybee - Bogbees 2026

17/10/2025

A worrying development!

NIEA has confirmed further sightings of Asian Hornet in the Dundonald area of Belfast.

Officials are now moving to employ 'track and trace' methods to establish the location of, and remove, any potential nest in the area.

⚠️ Report any suspect insects via the Asian Hornet Watch app https://www.brc.ac.uk/app/asian-hornet-watch

❗Suspected nests should not be disturbed but reported immediately.

03/09/2025

A "False Autumn" - It's a Worry for Our Bees. 🍂

Have you noticed conkers on the ground already, or been picking blackberries weeks earlier than usual? Whilst it might feel like a lovely, early start to autumn, it's actually a sign of something concerning that we need to talk about – a "false autumn."

Our trees and plants have been under immense stress from the hot, dry spells this year. In a desperate bid to survive, they're flowering and fruiting early. This is a survival mechanism, but it's knocking the delicate timing of nature out of sync.

So, what does this mean for our native Irish honeybees? 🐝
For our bees, autumn is the most critical time of year. It's their final, frantic rush to gather enough food to survive the long, damp winter ahead. Their number one resource right now should be ivy.

Ivy is the bees' last big larder of the year, providing a vital, late-season boost of nectar and pollen. This is the food that allows the colony to build up its winter honey stores and, crucially, raise the special generation of "winter bees."
These winter bees are physiologically different – they're built to last for months, not weeks. They are the ones who keep the colony alive until spring.

The Danger of the "Food Gap" 🍯

When ivy flowers early, it creates a dangerous "food gap." The bees' vital food source appears and then disappears weeks sooner than they've evolved to expect. This leaves a long, barren period before winter truly sets in. They may end up eating through their freshly gathered winter stores just to survive the autumn, leaving them with nothing for the cold months.

A lack of good nutrition now means fewer, weaker winter bees. This makes the entire colony more vulnerable to starvation and disease, and we could see more colonies failing to make it through to the spring.

Our native Irish honeybee is tough and adapted to our climate, but this is a huge new challenge driven by climate change. So, when you see those early conkers, think of our bees and the vital work they're doing against the clock.

10/05/2025

Bit of a discussion this morning at the club about the girls coming in covered in orange pollen, consensus was it's broom! (See link in comments) Do you agree drop us your opinion 👇

10/05/2025

Team was at the Loughshore apiary this morning soaking up the sun and carrying out the Colm O'Neill double brood manipulation on several strong colonies (link in the comments)

24/04/2025

On behalf of the Low Country Native Irish Honeybee Association we wish to thank Benburb Priory for the invitation to operate today's Beekeeper Day. The event was very well attended, the weather was kind and the bees were in excellent form.
We also wish to thank the parents and fearless children who took the time to call in and be amazed by the ingenuity, good temper and work ethic of our natives bees.

07/04/2025

St Joseph's becomes a biodiversity hub for our native pollinators, show them some love ❤️

08/03/2025

in attendance at the Native Irish Honey Bee Society conference in Athlone today.

17/02/2025

will be part of tonight's episode of Scéalta na Lochanna RTE1 8.30