This blog documents the story of the Bee Limerick Group and their quest to introduce honey bees back into the city centre of Limerick. Bee Limerick along with its partners are also involved in planting native Irish flowers, shrubs and trees to create a resilient urban ecology.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

French Artist and Beekeeper Olivier Darné Proclaims "Time Is Honey"

It wasn’t your everyday art installation: on Tuesday 70,000 honeybees swarmed busily inside a large mobile hive right in front of Paris’s stock market, where they will be displayed through October 2. The artist and beekeeper Oliver Darne is behind the project — which was carried out with support from the World Wildlife Foundation — and he offered samples of the honey to an intrigued public and to a reporter from the French newspaper Libération

The "banque du miel" or "honey bank" is intended to produce "honey as well as questions," according to a statement by the artist. Since honeybees’s numbers are declining in France as well as in other parts of the world, the installation reminds visitors of the environmental problems afflicting the species. And it’s not a coincidence that, in addition to installing his work in other French cities as well as Geneva and London, Darné chose to show his bees in front of the Paris stock market. It’s a statement about "two crises, one financial and the other environmental," according to the artist’s blog.


Darné creates a link between the two crises with his "honey bank," which provides an unusual kind of financial service: the public can purchase a "bee savings account," complete with an official-looking blue passbook, for a minimum deposit of €10 ($13). The payoff? Account-holders will receive a portion of the next crop of honey. The artist writes on his blog that the bee savings account has allowed people "to produce wealth and collectivity instead of money and loneliness and has demonstrated that time can be something other than money: TIME IS HONEY!"


Darné’s project is rich with associations, metaphors, and puns. Since the hives are located on the roof of the city hall in Saint-Denis, just outside Paris, and the busy workers gather pollen from a 3-kilometer radius around their hive, Darné speaks of the "pollination" of the city, seeing honey production as a metaphor for the local encounters that create broader urban culture. He makes a point of mentioning that bees and people both "butinent" — a French verb that means both to gather pollen and to gather information.

And in case anyone should doubt the artist’s bee-keeping skills, the honey bank announces on its website that its "miel béton" or "concrete honey" — so named because of its urban environment and its delicious thick consistency — has earned medals at the agricultural competition Concours Régional Agricole every year since 2001.
Source: http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/35781/french-artist-and-beekeeper-olivier-darn-proclaims-time-is-honey/

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Vanishing of the Bees

Vanishing of the Bees

In the UK, around 1/5 of honeybee hives were lost in the winter of 2008/2009. Bees pollinate 1/3 of the food we eat, and contribute £ 200,000 annually to the UK economy. This is known in apiary science as CCD or ‘colony collapse disorder’, a phenomenon in which worker bees from a beehive or European honey bee colony abruptly disappear. Not only do bees abandon their hives, but the queen and the brood as well. Even the predators that usually raid the hives for honey stay far away. Bees are disappearing all over the planet and no one knows why.

This phenomenon has brought beekeepers to crisis in an industry responsible for producing apples, broccoli, watermelon, onions, cherries and a hundred other fruits and vegetables. Commercial honeybee operations pollinate crops that make up one out of every three bites of food on our tables.

So why are the bees dying? This question merits a lengthy and well thought out response which covers massive differences of opinion among scientists, farmers, bee keepers and government agencies. The film ‘Vanishing of the Bees’ looks at CCD from the view point of the beekeeper as well as from the perspective of hard science while keeping in mind the mystic spirit of the honeybee. The film follows commercial beekeepers David Hackenberg and Dave Mendes as they strive to keep their bees healthy and fulfill pollination contracts across the U.S. The film explores the struggles they face as the two friends plead their case on Capital Hill and travel across the Pacific Ocean in the quest to protect their honeybees.

Filming across the US, in Europe, Australia and Asia, this documentary examines the alarming disappearance of honeybees and the greater meaning it holds about the relationship between mankind and mother earth. As scientists puzzle over the cause, organic beekeepers indicate alternative reasons for this tragic loss. Conflicting options abound and after years of research, a definitive answer has not been found to this harrowing mystery.

However, on a more positive note - with this crisis comes an opportunity for growth and change. As the bees die, there’s much more awareness now of the importance of pollinators and how many of our food crops are dependent on honeybees specifically.  Some people are exacting more sustainable approaches to living. Biodynamic agriculture and organic farming are on the rise and a host of alternative bee keeping methods are coming into fruition.  Even laws are being changed to accommodate urban beekeeping. Beekeeping became legal in New York City in March, much to the delight of the hundreds of residents who had been keeping bees in violation of the city’s health code.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Fota Island National Memorial Bee Garden by Micheal Mac Giolla Coda

During the year 1981 a number of projects were initiated to commemorate the foundation of the Federation of Irish Beekeepers Associations.

The inaugural meeting of F.I.B.K.A. which took place at the Royal Dublin Society's Show grounds at Ballsbridge, Dublin, on 21st April 1881 was commemorated on the hundredth anniversary of that date with a lecture delivered by Dr. Oliver Langley and the launching of a book entitled -"Beekeeping in Ireland - A History" by Mr. James Watson.

Further projects were embarked on in the course of the year including the establishment of a National Memorial Bee Garden. The primary objectives of this Bee Garden may be summarized as follows:

1.   The establishment of a fitting memorial to Irish Beekeepers of the past.
2.    The formation of a living link between beekeepers, past, present & future
3.   The planting of a collection of bee plants at a suitable centre, so that beekeepers and students of apiculture could observe bees at work on various flowers at different times of the year.
4.   The provision of some guidelines for beekeepers who might wish to incorporate bee plants in their own gardens or apiaries.
5.    The inclusion of a demonstration apiary containing various hive types which would portray the evolution of the beehive in Ireland, from straw skep to modern hive, also an observation hive and traditional "bee boles".
6.    Aesthetic considerations - the encouragement of visitors - by adding interest and attractiveness through the use of a wide range of flowering plant species which would provide some colour throughout the year.
A number of sites were investigated and one of these at Fota Island, adjacent to Cork City was found to possess the attributes deemed necessary for the successful establishment of a Bee Garden. This half acre site was very kindly donated by University College, Cork which had acquired the Smith-Barry Estate from Mrs. Bell, the previous owner in the mid-1970's and has since been managed by the Agricultural and Dairy Science Dept. of UCC. As well as expansive areas of agricultural land and woods, the estate contains a splendid mansion house, the grounds of which contain walled fruit gardens, ornamental gardens and an arboretum of great horticultural and historical importance, extending over more than thirty acres, in a magnificent parkland setting. It has long been a favourite venue for educational tours and the gardens are open to the general public from Easter to the end of September between the hours of 2.00 and 5.30 p.m. daily. Another major interest has now been added to the estate with the inclusion of a Wildlife Park where a wide range of wild animals may be viewed in natural surroundings. The Wildlife Park is due to open in June, 1983.

At Congress of F.I.B.K.A. which was convened at Gormanston College, Co. Louth in July 1981, a sub-committee of the National Executive was formed whose function it would be to put the Bee Garden project into practice. At a subsequent meeting which took place at The Munster Institute in Cork City, a working plan was evolved - detailing the layout, landscaping, planting and maintenance operations which would be necessary during the initial five-year period of establishment. The Committee are deeply indebted to members of the B.B.K.A. who gave their advice and supplied very valuable information regarding the Bee Gardens at Stoneleigh, Harrogate and Cornwall.

One of the most important pre-requisites for the success of the project was the availability of a number of dedicated voluntary workers who would be in a position to effect the various operations involved and this was probably the deciding factor in the selection of the Cork site as Co. Cork can boast of no less than six beekeepers Associations, all of which are affiliated to F.I.B.K.A. and the actual site itself is within the confines of the East Cork Beekeepers Assoc. The wisdom of this choice has been proved by the fact that the project has been brought to fruition within two years of its commencement.
Co-operation, sponsorship and hard work have been the order from the start and the people who helped in so many, many ways are too numerous to mention here. Unfortunately, the Bee Garden Committee, together with the National Executive and Irish Beekeepers in general suffered a severe loss in the spring of 1983 through the sudden and untimely death of one of its most dedicated and well-loved members - Finbarr Dineen. The Bee Garden itself and especially the inscription stone which stands beside the entrance gate, and which he was instrumental in transporting, from near his home in Co. Laois, will serve as a monument to one of Ireland's most distinguished beekeepers. He has enriched our lives in so many ways.

In selecting planting stock for the Bee Garden, subsequent maintenance was considered to be of primary importance. While the U.C.C. authorities have very graciously offered to maintain the grass areas, which cover about half of the site, it was agreed that the beds and borders should be planted with a wide range of flowering shrubs, woodland plants, bulbs and ground covering species including Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn flowering heathers, and heaths. The species used will require the minimum of post planting treatment and within a few years should provide complete suppression of weed growth.
Some specimen trees - already growing on the site - have been retained and add considerably to the attractiveness of the garden. These include groups of Mimosa, Palms, Magnolias and Maidenhair Tree, which provide a height dimension, shade and a suitable environment for certain plant species. A contrasting backdrop to the low-growing shrubs and heathers will be provided by flowering climbers on the two high boundary walls, while 'dual purpose' hedges of a variety of species demarcate the other boundaries.
Fota Island is situated about nine miles to the east of Cork City with which it is connected by road and rail services. It is beside the road to Cobh and just off the main
Cork-Waterford-Wexford Road
. The date set aside for the opening of the National Memorial Bee Garden is Saturday, 21st May, 1983 when at 3.00 p.m. Mr. Austen Deasy, Minister of Agriculture, will perform the official opening ceremony.



Honey bees and bumble bees in the city

Queen and her Court


Apis mellifera mellifera
Queen surrounded by her court.

Bee Limerick

Bee-Limerick is a long term sustainability project that aims to enhance Limerick City’s urban ecology by planting flowers, herbs, shrubs and trees to attract bees back into the city.
The planting regime will see flowers bloom around the city for most months of the year providing bees with a continuous ‘honey trail’ as a result. 

As most people are probably aware at this point in time, the world bee populations are on the brink of collapse. As bees are the planet’s great pollinators this will have huge adverse effects on world food supplies and will ultimately lead to food shortages.

The Bee-Limerick group hope to influence the city's planting programme to focus on more than just the aesthetic and maintenance values of plants.Plants should be chosen that function in supporting a viable ‘urban ecology’.  The Bee-Limerick group will involve city people in the project and so intends to encourage community groups, schools and any other interested parties to participate in the planting, care and maintenance of the city’s plants. They hope to increase civic pride generally by making local people the caretakers for the project thus contributing significantly to sustainability via clear and tangible results- the making Limerick City honey being just one example.

“Ultimately we would like to establish a thriving bee population and bee-keeping culture within the city limits.  This urban ecology concept is not new, as one local bee keeping expert stated ‘there are more bee keepers in the city of London than there are in the whole of Ireland.’”

The ‘Bee-Limerick Group’ also aims to raise awareness of the plight of bees by running lecturers on urban ecology, bee cinema, hive making workshops and honey making classes.