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.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Thriving Bee Hive

Varroa strips were added to the hive on the 19th of September. The following image shows the amount of varroa that had dropped out of the hive by September 29th.


The highest concentration of varroa in the drop tray were in the area directly below the brood. Even though the strips were placed in the four corners of the hive away from the brood. This indicates the highest concentration of varroa in the hive is in the brood. Otherwise varroa were fairly evenly distributed on the drop tray.

                         Close up of the varroa on the drop tray highlighted by black circles

Images taken at the Limerick City bee hive on Sunday 19th of September. The hive is thriving and the warm weather has brought on lots of activity.

The bees are being treated for the varroa mite. Generally I would prefer to use more ecologically sensitive treatments but that will require a long term integrated solution ...and a lot more research. For now,  - rather reluctantly - we are treating the bees with bayvarol strips as we don't want to take any chances of losing the hive to varroa over the winter months.


Bee, bee in flight and bee shadow. The white powder coating on the stationary bee is pollan from the invasive Himalayan Balsam. Bees love this plant for its nectar!.

 A wasp trying to enter a small and crowded hive entrance. The bees had no problem flying in and out but the wasps were put off by the crowded entrance.

The small and well protected hive entrance. On advice from a local bee keeper we delibertatley kept the hive entrance small to make it easier for the bees to guard against wasps - especially as the hive is new and still quite vulnerable.


                               A bee (about to land) covered in in white Himalayan Balsam pollan

Applying smoke to calm bees before lifting off glass section. The glass was completely sealed tight
with propolis and when I eventually wedged the glass open I was hit by a waft of warm air. Propolis may have many functions and I would prefer to design a hive that requires no hive destruction when checking bees. One clear choice for the future is the top bar hive. I have heard both poaitive and negative reviews of this type of hive for Irish weather but Bee Limerick will test one ourselves.

Applying a small bit more smoke - although I feel I could have worked away without the smoke altogether as the bees were totually calm.

Inserting the bayvarol strips. A strip is placed in each corner and away from the main brood which is concentrated in the centre of the hive

                               Carefully re-attaching the grass viewing cover  - without hurting any bees : )

                                                          And finally re-attaching the roof

                           Job done! The bees were actually very calm throughout the whole process.

                                                         Varroa showing in the hive

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Non Violent Bee Keeping

Most people are aware that honey bees are disappearing at an alarming rate, in what has come to be known as Colony Collapse Disorder. Besides Verroa Destructer that attacks Apis Cerana and Apis Mellifera, most literature focuses the blame on external factors outside the hive like increased pesticide use, changing farm practices and loss of biodiversity.

Bee hive ecology has developed over millions of years and a natural bee hive hanging from a tree looks nothing like the national bee hives developed by modern bee keepers. Natural bee hives evolution is clearly designed for increased hive resilience and survival of the hive. In contrast, the evolution of the modern bee hive is exclusively focussed on maximising honey production with little or no regard for bee well-being. It is clear that controlling bees for maximum honey production instead of giving them the room and freedom to create hive resilience is part of the CCD problem.  This logic was never questioned until bees started to collapse, pollination reduced and honey production began to dry up.

Natural bee hives are sophisticated fine tuned micro eco-systems where every creature plays his/her role....on the opposite spectrum modern bee keeping is little more than a bee factory where the bees are periodically dosed with chemicals, pulled apart for inspection, moved around and even have their drone stocks 'culled'  - all with the aim of maximising honey production. In a natural setting we need bees for honey and pollination and they don't actually need us for anything. So isn't it time we started developing modern bee keeping methods to consider more resilient hives and happier bees. Maybe if we start to give them what they need to thrive they will supply us with the 'goods and services' of pollination which we need for our own survival...and a little honey and wax too : ))

It is disempowering when I read about all those huge external pressures on honey bee populations - because in the short term I can do very little about that. Although we are beginning to address this with the bee friendly biodiversity network. - but if I start by asking the question - 'how can I reduce the internal stresses at the bee hive level to create more resilient hives and happier bees?' At least happy bees in a strong hive have a greater chance of dealing with mounting external pressures..... and give us a little more wiggle room to start addressing those broader issues.

Rather than researching this topic too much more I stumbled upon a great article by Philip Chandlier called Non Violent Bee Keeping for the Natural Bee Keeper. And it is really worth a read : )

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Bee Limerick and Limerick City Biodiversity Network

Our bees are now well established in Limerick City - so the next step is making sure they have enough to eat, especially over the leaner months of early spring and late autumn. So Bee Limerick have decided to get involved in an exciting project of expanding biodiversity areas within the city to increase the bees foraging areas ....as well as bringing floral splashes to our city.

Biodiverity planted flower bed with King John's castle in the background

We have a little 'growing' revolution happening here in Limerick  : ) with lots of community gardens springing up throughout the city and supplying veg and fruit for local people. The planting of flowers, trees and shrubs are a continuous food source for other city residents, namely the local ecology. Earlier this year the Limerick Biodiversity Network secured its first piece of land along Clancy Strand to plant native flowers, schrubs and trees to increase the city's ecological resilience. The project is not just a draw for local butterflies and bumblebees as many people are being drawn to the area to take photos and enjoy the amazing floral displays. It is the plan to erect an information board describing the various plants, their ecologival values and the range of biodiversity they attract and support.

So Bee Limerick will work alonside Limerick Biodiversity Network and its partners Green Limerick  to build on this energy and roll out the project across the city in 2012. This will see waste land, under used and overgrown green areas within the city converted into ecological habitats by planting native flowers, shrubs and trees. We hope, over time a network of planted areas will begin to spring up around the city supporting a diverse range of flowering, fruiting and seeding plants such as wild Irish flowers, native apple trees and herbs. Any planting regime will be developed in collaboration with community groups and the local authority and integrated with the various other environmental initiatives being created through the Green Limerick platform, including the Bee Limerick initiative.
So if we get the community to plant in their own areas, the bees will pollinate the plants and together (bees and people) we can make Limerick City honey. We envisage a city-wide biodiverity walk to be enjoyed by community and visitors.

It is important to encourage schools and local communities to get involved from the beginning  by selecting sites to incorporate into the biodiversity network and in collaboration with Limerick City Biodiversity Network and Green Limerick, design a suitable planting scheme for the area in order to submit a detailed proposal to the city council. These projects will encourage a greater sense of civic responsibility and pride at a local level by giving communities the means to support and maintain urban ecology and beautify their own areas.

‘This is really about devolving some planning and management of green areas to local commnity groups and giving them a sense of ownership, which in time will generate a collective effort that contributes to the beautifying and betterment of the city as a whole.’ says Diarmuid Neilan of Green Limerick.

So if you’d like to take part in this project, do contact the Limerick City Biodiversity Network at limerickbiodiversity@gmail.com

or visit Green Limerick face book page for project updates and up coming events
http://www.facebook.com/GreenLimerick

bee Limerick initiative
http://beelimerick.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

The arrival of our first bees to Limerick City

Bee Limerick have brought their first bee colony into Limerick City thanks to the pledges made by the many generous people. The bees are the native Irish dark bee Apis Mellifera Mellifera and were sourced from a reputable supplier.  Presently the amount of bees in the hive number between 10,000- 20,000. If the weather improves and the hive thrives -  we hope the population in the hive will expand to 50,000 plus over the summer.
The bee hive we are using is called a national standard hive and it was generously donated by bee keeper John O’Neill.  It is our hope to make a more ecological sound second hive known as a ‘Top Bar’ hive. The idea is to compare the honey yields and colony successes of the National hive verses the Top Bar hive.
The bees were given to us by county Limerick bee keeper Leslie Hartigan. Recognition must be given to Leslie for offering us the bees at a huge knock down price as Irish bees are very scarce these days and a nucleus may fetch anywhere between 175 – 275 euros. Leslie has also been very helpful in giving us bundles of advice to help Bee Limerick find our feet.
We will have a honey back guarantee of Limerick City honey in 2012 for all pledges, if the colonies are successful!
Please stay posted for updates on our general progress, hive  making and honey processing classes.
            Our third visit to Leslie and our first look at our hive with the new bee nucleus installed

                                            Leslie inspecting the varroa tray. Our hive has the all clear : ))


                           Thorough inspection of our hive for vorroa and yep we have the all clear : ))

                              Luciana and Brian look on as Leslie describes in detail the behaviour of the bees
   
                                  
       Bee Propolis: a resinous mixture that honey bees collect from tree buds, sap flows, or other botanical sources. It is used as a sealant for unwanted open spaces in the hive.
Propolis is used for small gaps (approximately 6 millimeters (0.24 in) or less), while larger spaces are usually filled with beeswax.

The five frames from the mini nucleus inserted into our hive. In time the bees will expand out to fill all frames....with luck!!

Leslie sharing some truly important information with us on maintaining a thriving hive

                                  And finally.....we have our first bee hive safely installed in Limerick City

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Sustainable Bee Keeping

Bee Limerick is about creating a resilient urban ecology that will support native bees and other wildlife to thrive within the city limits. It is very important that we influence the planting regime in the city to consider native Irish flowers, shrubs and trees. But what about the actual hives the bees live in? The traditional national hives are expensive, heavy and all the extra little bits needed really begin to add up in cost. Wouldn't be great to have a more natural bee hive that is more sustainable, low-impact, low-cost, chemical-free, small-scale, 'organic', that requires the use of simple equipment that almost anyone can make at home. Sounds good to me : )

This is when we came across the very informative website http://www.biobees.com/ which is all about sustainable bee keeping, and The Barefoot Beekeeper which is a revolutionary book about 'sustainable', chemical-free beekeeping, showing how it can be simplified and made accessible to all, including people with disabilities, as with this method there is no heavy lifting involved.

The author strips away all unnecessary complication and confusion, demonstrating that 'modern' beekeeping methods are largely to blame for the poor state of health of the honeybee and that the commercialization of beekeeping marked the start of the disease and parasite problems that honeybees have been trying to deal with ever since.

The author advocates small-scale, sustainable beekeeping, with minimal disturbance to the bees and more time spent observing and learning from them. This book shows how you can make everything you need to keep bees yourself, using recycled materials and simple tools: you do not need to buy any additional equipment at all, nor do you need synthetic medications or other chemicals.


 Sustainable kee keeping is all about the 'top bar hives' or 'natural beekeeping' and the biobees website has an amazing 44 page free manual on how to make your first top-bar bee hive.

This will definitely be an up coming project for bee limerick. Also it will be interesting to record the success and failures of each hive design over the period of one year.

Top bar bee hive with viewing window so bees can be observed without disturbing them and altering the temperature in the hive

Monday, May 30, 2011

Identifying Native Bumble Bees

Ireland has one native honey bee, 20 bumble bees and 80 solitary bees species. Ireland’s bee fauna is less than half the size of that in Britain, which has about 260 species, and is very depauperate is comparison to central Europe.

Bumble bees
Bumble bees are social and live in colonies with a Queen, female workers and some males. From a total of 20 Irish species, 6 species are cuckoo bumblebees and don’t make their own nests, but instead lay their eggs in the nest of a true bumblebee. 

The National Biodiversity Data Centre has a list of species profiles for Irish bees

The natural history museum in London has released an interactive tool to help you identify bees 

Rothamsted the agricultural research centre in England makes available a simple diagram to help group bumblebees according to their colour. UK Bumblebee Colour Groups

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Local Bee Visitors

                   Flower Common Fumitory, Fumaria officinalis, Camán searraigh díge
                   Bee Common carder bumble bee - Bombus pascuorum

Common carder bumble bee - Bombus pascuorum . It is a surface-nesting bumble bee which constructs its nest in cavities such as old mouse runs and among mats of moss in lawns.Nests can contain up to 200 workers. Only the young fertilised queen survives the winter, having hibernated in a protected place such as a hole or under moss. She emerges in spring, either starting up her own colony or taking over an existing one. The queen makes pots of wax and pollen into which the first eggs are laid.This species is a long-tongued bee which prefers flowers with a long flower tube such as red and white clover and lavender and members of the Labiate family.