The Federation of
Irish Beekeepers' Associations
The Federation of
Irish Beekeepers' Associations
Bees collect nectar and pollen from flowers. The nectar is converted into honey, the bee's energy producing food. The pollen supplies proteins, vitamins and minerals that are essential for growth, especially in the larval stage, and for body development and maintenance in the adult bee.
Many plants are of minor importance to the Irish beekeeper and his hopes of getting a surplus crop of honey rest mainly on a relatively small number of plants namely white clover, blackberry, lime, ling heather, bell heather, hawthorn, sycamore, fruit blossom (e.g. raspberry), oil seed rape, and knapweed.
Some of those plants are restricted to certain localities; the heather requires acid soils such as bog land or mountain areas. Other plants such as clover, blackberry and hawthorn are more widespread.
Modern farming practice has a notable effect on bee plants; silage cutting may reduce or almost eliminate a honey yield from clover if the crop is cut when the clover is starting to flower; over-use of nitrogenous fertilisers and/or slurry will also have an adverse effect on the clover.
Levelling of fences or severe cutting of hawthorn and blackberry will reduce the flowers.
Over grazing of hills in recent years has destroyed extensive heather sites. On the credit side the introduction of oil seed rape has proved invaluable for many beekeepers.
The white clover is the most important source of honey in Ireland and probably throughout the world. After grass it is the most dominant plant found in our pastures, both as a result of natural reseeding and of its inclusion in grass seed mixtures; it has a long season of flowering, from late May until early August, and each flower head consists of numerous individual flowers.
The white clover requires a soil with a pH reading of 6.0 to 6.5 or higher for heavy nectar secretion and in acid soils is a poor honey plant. Many areas have soils that are naturally suitable, for example large parts of Kildare and Kilkenny or the Golden Vale. On the other hand many other counties, through the continued use of ground limestone, maintain the pH level at its maximum productive value that fortunately suits the beekeeper also, e.g. Wexford, our leading honey producing county.
There are two main groups of white clover, the wild white and the 'Dutch'.
The wild white is indigenous and is found especially in permanent pastures; it has small flower heads and yields nectar at lower temperatures than the Dutch does.
The Dutch is a bigger plant with larger flowers and is found mainly in meadows or new leas, resulting from its inclusion in grass seed mixtures. Originally the seed was imported from Holland and hence the name 'Dutch', but with selection and breeding many new strains developed, including the well-known Welsh strain, S100.
Clover yields best when the day temperature is between 20°C and 25°C or higher with plenty of moisture in the ground; a shallow rooted plant it stops secreting nectar if the topsoil dries up.
Under suitable climatic conditions - warm, sunny, abundant moisture in the soil clover may yield heavily for three to four weeks and the heaviest flows, depending on the season and the district, are some time from mid June to late July.
Many older beekeepers will recall 1955 when cool, wet weather persisted during May and June. On July 5 the sun shone forth and continued shining every day, without a break, for the remainder of the month giving day temperatures of 25°C and higher.
The white clover, late in flowering due to the cold weather earlier, was at its best and there was an excellent nectar flow that lasted into the first week of August. Deep supers, averaging 45 lbs. of honey each, were filled in three to four days at the height of the flow.
Another great honey year, 1959 (for many considered one of the best), had, by contrast, fine warm weather from early May to early August with a few short spells of cool showery weather. The white clover yielded very well from mid-June to mid-July, after which the flow ceased due to the drought.
For many beekeepers and especially the younger members 1989 is at the top of the honey crop table. May and early June had above average wet, showery weather. However, from mid-June warm settled weather set in accompanied by a steady rise in temperature to reach a maximum of 30°C by mid July and the nectar poured in!
White clover honey is light in colouring, varying from white to light amber depending on the soil and the season. It has a mild, pleasant flavour and is the most popular honey on the market. It produces the finest sections of all honeys.
White clover pollen is common in honey but is rarely collected in the pollen baskets by the bees and the beekeeper seldom sees loads of it on the bee's legs; it has a dull green colour.
The sunny Southeast, and in particular Co.Wexford, is the major white clover honey producing area with an extension along the south coast through Waterford and Cork, and on the east coast in parts of Wicklow and Dublin. But the rapid development of modern beekeeping in recent years has shown the potential of other areas, in particular the valley of the three sister rivers - Barrow, Nore and Suir - where beekeepers harvest satisfactory crops.
In most years climatic conditions retard the nectar flow in the west and north of the country although here again there are areas where good crops are obtained.
What is the future of white clover in Irish Farming? Many farmers are questioning the over use of artificial nitrogenous fertilisers. Once again they are relying more on the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen by bacteria on the root nodules of legumes such as clover.
New Zealand farmers make full use of this free service to produce cheaper and better quality grass, the foundation of their dairy and meat producing industries. Apart from cost cutting the reliance on clover for a large proportion of nitrogen needs for maximum grass growth is also environmentally friendly and will help to reduce water pollution.
The future looks promising and the benefits for farmers and beekeepers will restore Ireland to a land flowing with milk and honey!
In many parts of Ireland the blackberry is second only to the white clover as a valuable nectar producing plant and, in fact, in our average summers with an absence of warm, sunny weather the blackberry is the major source of the surplus honey crop in most areas.
The blackberry grows freely almost everywhere, irrespective of soil type and it has a long flowering season. In low-lying southern counties it flowers from mid June to early August, overlapping the clover season.
Bees work both plants at the same time, resulting in a clover honey blended with some blackberry honey providing the main surplus crop. Since pure blackberry honey has, what some consider, an unattractive flavour this blending masks the taste and, in fact, many people prefer the blend to pure clover honey.
Within the blackberry species there are many natural varieties - one research botanist listed over three hundred varieties in Ireland. Anyone can identify many varieties in an ordinary farmland fence - some with thorns, others thornless; different coloured flowers, white, pink and various shades; rounded, pointed or divided leaves; early flowering and late flowering.
The production of such a varietal family is the result of natural cross-pollination over thousands of years. This multiplicity of varieties is an added bonus for beekeepers as it extends the flowering season and probably has varieties that maximise honey production at different temperature and moisture levels. Hence the reliability of blackberry in Ireland.
Like the clover modern farming is reducing the blackberry by the removal of fences, the close 'cropping' of hedges, the spraying of bush herbicides on the side of fences and on waste ground.
On the credit side the controlled management of fences produces young, vigorous blackberry canes with a strong root system that absorbs nutrients from the well-fertilised local field.
The Hawthorn, also called the May bush or Whitethorn, but more generally known to most people by its Irish name, The Sceach, flourished in hedges/fences everywhere except along the exposed western seaboard or in the very acid bog-land soils. It flowers from mid-May to mid-June, depending on the weather and the locality.
Unfortunately it is a most irregular yielder of nectar even when flowering coincides with warm sunny weather. A recent study in the USA in areas where the hawthorn grows abundantly but also yields irregularly, even though the weather pattern is almost uniform, failed to pinpoint the reason for the irregularity.
Here when we got a heavy flow from hawthorn the weather was warm and humid; such a flow was heavy and continued sometimes for ten to fourteen days as in 1998 but often for only a week or less.
Some connoisseurs of honey rate hawthorn honey as their favourite with its rich, nutty flavour. It has a very good 'body' or density and is a dark, brownish colour with a distinctive aroma.
Some experts say honey has no scent but either they are heavy smokers (thus destroying their sense of smell) or else they never visited an apiary when the hawthorn is yielding with the pungent scent filling the air surrounding the apiary and permeating the inside of the hive.
The hawthorn is also an excellent supplier of pollen and it is easy to recognise the pale white pollen loads in the pollen baskets. At the time when brood rearing is at its peak for the clover flow this fresh pollen is invaluable.
The Lime Tree known as the Linden or Basswood in some countries and a major honey producer world-wide, especially in countries having warm summers, is of limited value to Irish beekeepers as very rarely is it found in sufficient quantities to influence the honey yield except in small apiaries.
There are locations, usually near large estates, where avenues or small groves of lime provide extensive bee flora and in favourable seasons local beekeepers obtain a reasonable surplus. There are several species of lime producing flowers from June to August but the common type found in Ireland, Tilia Vulgaris, is in blossom in July.
Warm, humid conditions with heavy dew at night favour nectar secretion from the lime and the flow is heavy. The nectar usually dries up by early afternoon and to check if the bees are working the lime watch the tree in the forenoon.
Lime honey is extra light in colour but sometimes may have a greenish tinge and has a sharp taste when pure.
Lime trees have one undesirable feature, honeydew. This honeydew is the secretion of insects that live on the leaves of the lime tree. On occasions the bees collect this, spoiling the honey with which it is mixed.
All honeydew is not obnoxious. In many European countries (e.g. Germany) the most highly sought after honey is the honeydew obtained from the conifers and many beekeepers rely on it for the bulk of their crop.
When people talk of heather honey they generally mean the honey derived from Ling heather. This honey is thixotropic, i.e. it forms a jelly and will not flow or pour except when agitated.
The Ling heather grows extensively in the peat bog areas of the midlands and on mountains and hillsides where the soil is acidic. It flowers from early August to late September but the nectar secretion is confined to a short spell, often only four or five days, in the flowering season.
The actual time of maximum secretion varies from year to year and it can occur, without warning, anytime when the plant is in flower. Some years the Ling does not yield at all or just to a very limited extent, even though the weather is apparently suitable, while in other similar years it yields copiously. A heavy heather flow results in supers filling rapidly. Young heather yields better than old bushy plants.
Heather honey has its own particular flavour, unlike that of any other honey and is a favourite with many people. It may vary in colour from light to dark brown. As the demand for heather honey far outstrips supply it fetches a premium price. Owing to the difficulty of extraction many beekeepers prefer to produce sections of heather honey.
The Ling flowers so late in the season, when the other major nectar producing plants have finished flowering, that many beekeepers move their bees to suitable heather sites in August.
While they may not harvest a surplus crop every year, at least the brood chamber is usually full of stores for the winter. Unless bees are confined to the hive for a long spell, which is unusual in Ireland, heather honey is suitable for winter food.
For those moving bees to the heather the advice may be summarised thus - go early, early in the morning, early in August and come home late, late in the evening, late in September.
Rarely is pure heather honey produced in Ireland as bees work other plants that abound in our bog lands flowering in Autumn, notably Knapweed (Centaurea nigra) which is also known as Hardheads and Scabious varieties such as Devil's Bit. Both Knapweed and Scabious are valuable nectar plants and often the honey derived from both makes up a large percentage of the so-called heather honey crop.
The Bell Heather, probably more correctly bell heath, is a very valuable nectar producing plant providing a honey that flows and is easy to extract. The honey is a port wine colour with a "heather" like flavour.
Bell flowers during July but may continue into August to overlap with ling. Its flowers are a rich deep purple colour and very attractive. When people talk of the heather clad hills and bogs they are referring to the bell heather flowers as Ling has very small flowers only noticed close up. The Bell grows in the same environment as Ling.
Beekeepers in Northeastern Ireland move their bees to the Mourne Mountains in July to harvest a rewarding crop from the bell heather. The Mournes are outstanding for this honey crop; seemingly the soil structure is ideal.
When people plant "heather" in their gardens they are planting heaths, derived originally at selection from the bell and related species; they are very attractive to bees and provide valuable nectar and pollen, especially from the spring or late autumn flowering varieties. While most of the garden heaths require an acid soil some will grow in alkaline conditions and the nurseryman will advise on these plants.
Oil Seed Rape, introduced into Ireland as a 'break' crop to facilitate crop rotation on extensive tillage farms, soon established itself as a valuable cash crop resulting in increased acreage especially in tillage counties.
For beekeepers it proved a boon. Tillage was eliminating clover pastures and rarely did a tillage crop benefit beekeepers until the coming of oil seed rape.
Oil seed rape is a very good nectar producer and with its abundance of attractive flowers opening continuously over several weeks a surplus honey is stored rapidly. As this crop granulates very quickly it must be extracted immediately after removal from the hive.
Some people consider oil seed rape honey as having a bland taste but when blended with clover or similar available honey the resulting flavour is attractive. In Canada where oil seed rape honey is extensively harvested the honey packers market it under the brand name Canola, thus eliminating the word 'rape' from the honey label.
This is an excellent yielder of both nectar and pollen and where a large acreage is cultivated the beekeeper that provides colonies for pollination may reap a satisfactory surplus of a light coloured honey.
The flower of the raspberry hangs downward and hence the nectar is protected from rain; often the bees are seen visiting the flowers in light rain when other flowers are ignored. The raspberry flowers in June in, what some beekeepers refer to as, the 'hungry gap' before the clover/blackberry flow.
The Apple is the most widely grown fruit in Ireland and, depending on the season, may commence flowering as early as mid-April or as late as mid-May and continue in flower for three to four weeks. It is a valuable source of nectar and pollen for this period of maximum brood rearing but rarely is a surplus honey crop obtained.
Other fruits are of minor importance although the Blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum) is a source of nectar and pollen in the Southeast where large areas of blackcurrants are cultivated; it flowers in April. The Gooseberry (Ribes grossularia) which flowers earlier than the blackcurrant is a minor spring food source where grown for market. The Strawberry (Fragarea vesca) is a useful pollen plant but a poor yielder of nectar.
For all fruit crops bees are essential for pollination and while some cultivars will produce partial crops by self-pollination others are self-sterile and must have insect pollination to fertilise them; two notable examples are Bramley Seedling apple and Conference pear.
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is a very valuable source of both nectar and pollen in spring and early summer. Its exceptionally long season of flowering, allied to the fact that it will grow almost anywhere, adds to its value. Furthermore the flower opens only in sunshine and this protects the nectar and pollen from damage by rain or frost. In favourable seasons a little surplus dandelion honey is stored and is easily identified by its very distinctive wax capping.
Willow or Sally (Salix spr.) is found practically everywhere but especially in river valleys and where the soil is wet. There are numerous species flowering from February to May. Pollen is produced freely and since the willow pollen is very rich in the essential amino acids it is of great value to the beekeeper for spring build-up. Most willows yield nectar also.
Since willows root freely from cuttings beekeepers should propagate the best strains (e.g. The Pussy Foot or Goat Willow), planting them in waste ground.
Beekeepers in the midlands find Knapweed (Centaurea nigra) also called Blackheads or Hardheads a very good nectar producer in early autumn overlapping the ling heather flow.
Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) is a member of the maple family notable for the high sugar content of the sap. In some countries maples are tapped for sugar extraction. This rich sap results in high yields of nectar from the sycamore in May when weather is suitable but rarely are there sufficient trees to produce a surplus crop. Perhaps our modern re-afforestation programme may improve the acreage of sycamore and other nectar producing trees.
Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) also flowering in May is another valuable source of nectar and pollen; the pollen is a distinctive brick-red colour.
Ivy (Hedera helix) is excellent for topping up winter stores. It flowers in October-November and is a copious producer of nectar and pollen. It is one of the most reliable bee plants in Ireland and there is always at least a fortnight of suitable weather while the ivy is in flower.
There are many other plants of minor importance, yielding nectar or pollen or both and all helping to provide food so essential for colony development. These include Thistles, Trefoils (especially Bird's Foot), Ragwort, Sage, Scabious, Butterbur, Fuchsia, and Gorse.
A number of cultivated garden flowers and shrubs are also useful. These include Wallflowers, Crocus, Snowdrops, Michaelmas Daisies, Flowering Currant, Berberis, Buddleia Globosa, Escallonias, Cotoneasters (C. horizontalis), Viburnums and many others. Those flowering early are especially valuable.