Dear old Murph – 2008 – 2018
All posts by Gimlet
Ashford Honey Festival
Ashford & District Beekeepers are having a Honey Festival:
Éanna Ní Lamhna will give a talk on Biodiversity and the Importance of Pollinators.
There will also be a skep making demonstration – that’s me, that is.
Map here:
Henry
This is Henry the fearless 12 week old kitten playing with his dog Polly, who isn’t as thin as she looks.
Irish Native Queen & Nuc Suppliers
Click here for updated list of Irish Native Honey Bee suppliers
Click here for more about the Native Irish Honey Bee
Skeps and Skep Beekeeping
The straw skep is a familiar part of the beekeeper’s equipment. Nowadays they are used primarily to gather summer swarms and winter cobwebs but in the past, skeps were used to hive bees all year round. Continue reading Skeps and Skep Beekeeping
Keeping Bees isn’t Rocket Science…
…it’s much more difficult than that!
Bee Flower – Coltsfoot
Coltsfoot is in bloom now – 9th March 2017. It is an Irish native and a member of the aster family – their asterness is obvious in this rather poor header photograph.
I didn’t realise the bees visit this plant but here is the evidence – note the lemon yellow pollen loads.
Coltsfoot is unusual in that the flowers come out before any leaves are visible. The heart shaped leaves come along later and are not at all like a dandelion.
It is thought that Coltsfoot flowers are a cure for coughs.
Click here for more March bee flowers
Copyright © Beespoke.info, 2017. All Rights Reserved.
Noxious Weeds!
You know how we all go on about how there’s a law out there that says farmers should remove ragwort from their land or face the consequences?
Well beekeepers, read this and weep – the full list of ‘Invasive Species and Noxious Weeds’ as specified by the Department of Agriculture is as follows: Continue reading Noxious Weeds!
Irish Beekeepers Protest
Beekeepers of Ireland rise up and protest against the Heritage Bill before all this goes up in flames!
Meet outside Dáil Éireann with Gerry Ryan et al at 12.30 on 2nd March 2017 and let our Senators know we are against this stupid Bill!
Heritage Bill?
The Heritage Bill, due before the Seanad this week (21st February 2017 ) seems to have nothing at all to do with Heritage other than to extend the period landowners or County Councils can burn, cut, grub or otherwise erase the natural bit from the landscape. That natural bit is the bit our bees rely on.
This the part of the bill that will most affect us:
“…permit to the burning of vegetation in March, during such period or periods and in such areas of the State as the Minister may specify. Section 8 also provides for the amendment of section 40 to allow landowners or their agents to cut, grub or destroy vegetation in any hedge or ditch during August, subject to such Regulations as the Minister may make….”
I don’t need to tell you that the gorse (aka furze) is in bloom in March and our bees are all over it gathering vital early spring forage. If it is grubbed out and burnt at all, but especially in March, our bees, wild bees and other insects will all be deprived of a valuable early spring pollen source.
As for cutting, grubbing and burning in August – well I also don’t need to tell you that – although our honey crop may be in, our bees are busily working all the other flowers in the hedgerows for as long as the weather allows in their build up for winter. Blackberry, for one, can flower well into October.
Let’s not forget that the heather will bloom all the way through August and into September. Heather is defined as scrub too.
Hedgecutting usually means decapitating mature hawthorn trees so there will be no flowers for the bees on such victims for several years.
Then there’s other important bee trees – willow and hazel – otherwise known as scrub. We need all of this stuff!
Let’s not forget the ivy either!
This bill is due before the Seanad this week – 21st February 2017 -and beekeepers need to make their feelings known to their TDs, Senators and MEPs before it is all too late:
Detail
Here’s the section or the ‘Heritage’ Bill that will have most effect on bees, birds and other wildlife – vertebrate and invertebrate:
Part 3
Wildlife
Section 7 sets out definitions relating to the wildlife primary legislation.
Section 8 provides for amendments to section 40 of the Wildlife Acts. The new provisions under section 8 give the Minister power by Regulations to permit to the burning of vegetation in March, during such period or periods and in such areas of the State as the Minister may specify. Section 8 also provides for the amendment of section 40 to allow landowners or their agents to cut, grub or destroy vegetation in any hedge or ditch during August, subject to such Regulations as the Minister may make.
Section 9 relates to updating references to Inland Fisheries Ireland and to current fisheries legislation.
Section 10 provides for clarification of the powers of authorised officers of the Department and An Garda Síochána under the Wildlife Acts.
Section 11 provides for the updating of penalties for offences under the Wildlife Acts and the introduction of fixed payment notices for certain offences.
The bill in its entirety can be viewed here: https://www.oireachtas.ie/documents/bills28/bills/2016/216/b216s-memo.pdf
Click here to sign a petition agains this bill
Click here for Birdwatch Ireland reaction to this bill
Click here for AnTaisce reaction
Click here for Bee Flowers in August
Click here for Bee Flowers in March
Click here for more about Gorse
Click here for more about heather
Click here for more about Willow
Click here for more about Hawthorn
Click here for more about Hazel
Copyright © Beespoke.info, 2017. All Rights Reserved.