Scottish Beekeepers Association
The member organisation representing Scottish beekeepers nationally and internationally
Additional information
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Scottish Beekeepers Association
Frequently Asked Questions
Perhaps you will find an immediate answer to your enquiry here.
Q. I have a nest of wild bees in my garden or my house. Should I offer them to a beekeeper?
A. First, check if what you have are bees or wasps. This may sound rather obvious, but it is an easy mistake to make. Wasps and honeybees are about the same size, but wasps have alternating black and bright yellow body stripes. Honeybees are brown, with paler brown or dirty yellow bands on the body. Bumblebees are furry. If you have a nest of honeybees, and the nest is causing a danger to you, children or livestock, then call your Local Authority (Council) Pest Control Officer or an independent pest control company. They will probably make a charge for this. A beekeeper might be interested in removing a nest of honeybees, but not wasps or bumblebees (see below). However please don't be deluded into thinking you are doing a beekeeper a favour by offering them the chance of a 'free' nest of bees for the trouble of removing it. The time and trouble involved in removing a wild bee nest successfully usually far outweighs any benefit to the beekeeper. In addition a colony of bees of unknown origin may be carrying pests or disease and a beekeeper is unlikely to want to introduce these to otherwise healthy bees in their apiary. If you feel compelled to try and locate a local beekeeper to help you, then please refer to our list of contacts for Local Associations. However, please don't be surprised, or offended, if they turn you down - beekeepers are NOT a free pest control service!
Q. I have a nest of bumblebees under a shed or in a compost heap. I'm worried they are a danger and I want rid of them. How do I kill them?
A. Please don't! Bumblebees are one of our wild insects that occur naturally throughout the country. Unfortunately, due to loss of habitat and the prevalence of pesticide use, their numbers are decreasing and some species are already under severe threat of extinction. Bumblebees are rarely in any way aggressive, and will only sting if you provoke them severely by disturbing the nest. The nest is seasonal, and dies out naturally once the new generation of queen bumblebees has been reared towards the end of the summer. The queens go off to hibernate in a dry hole somewhere, and the remaining workers in the nest die by the end of October. It will be in order for you to move your shed or compost heap then. In the meantime, consider yourself lucky and privileged to have them nesting in your garden, and develop a sense of moral responsibility in helping protect our nation's wildlife. Also use the link on the right to contact the Bumblebee Conservation Trust.
Q. OK, I have a wasps nest. How can I get rid of it myself?
A. Again, please don't, unless the nest poses a danger to children or pets. Wasps do a great deal of help in the garden by consuming large numbers of caterpillars and other plant pests. It may be safer in fact to leave the nest alone, unless it is already causing a nuisance. If you MUST get rid of it, use the services of a qualified Pest Control specialist, or one of the proprietary products available from hardware stores and garden centres, following the instructions carefully. Please do NOT use 'DIY' remedies such as flammable liquids, bashing it with a shovel etc. You will probably get stung, fail to remove the nest, and may end up damaging your home and property.
Q. I want to buy some honey from a local beekeeper. How do I find one in my area?
A. Go to the page of Local Association Contacts (use the link on the right), where you will find the names and contact details for the Secretaries of Local Beekeeping Associations throughout Scotland. Look for the one nearest or most convenient to you, and ask them to put you in contact with a local member who sells honey. Alternatively, try your local Health Food shops and also Farmers' Market, if you have one.
Q. Why is locally produced honey so much more expensive than supermarket honey?
A. When you buy honey, you get what you pay for. Independent beekeepers in Scotland have to work in a very unpredictable climate, which can mean a bumper crop one year, and nothing the next. Scottish honey is produced from a wide range of mostly wild plants and flowers, the honey yield of which also varies from year to year. This produces a honey of remarkably fine quality and unique style, which is highly regarded. Much supermarket honey is imported, and in addition overseas producers are sometimes paid very poorly for their product. It generally also comes from countries which are warmer, have a more consistent climate, and where the quantity and nature of the crop is assured year-on-year. These honeys, often from a single cultivated floral source, are often more mild in flavour, and lack the distinctive quality of good Scottish Honey. Scottish Beekeepers are totally independent, they receive no government help or subsidy, and must maintain the overheads of equipment and stocks of bees entirely from the income they generate from selling honey and honey products. All these factors contribute to the cost of honey production in Scotland.
Q. I am interested in taking up beekeeping. How do I get started?
A. Excellent news, the country needs more beekeepers! You will first need to make contact with some other local beekeepers, and this is best done by joining your Local Association. Go to the page of Local Association Contacts (use the link on the right) to find the Secretary of your nearest Local Association. You should also join the Scottish Beekeepers' Association, and you will find details of how do do this on the Membership Page (using the link on the right). You will find that your Local Association holds outdoor meetings and demonstrations, as well as lectures and talks throughout the year, and you will find these, plus the advice of other members, an excellent way to get started. Try also looking at the Learning Beekeeping section of this website (use the link on the right) for some basic information on how to keep and manage bees. Your local library will also be likely to have some beekeeping books - and of course as an SBA member you are entitled to use the extensive members' Library See the link on the right to the Library page.
Q. I want to make my own hives. Where can I find plans?
A. There are plans on this website to all the common types of hive in use in the UK. Go to the Hive Plans page. (Follow the link on the right.)
Q. I want to come and work as a beekeeper for the Association - how do I do this?
A. The SBA is a voluntary membership organisation, which represents the interests of its members to Governments and other National bodies, and acts to inform its members about new developments in beekeeping. It is not an employer; it has no staff and does not run any Apiaries. It is not possible to work for the SBA. All the work of the Association is done on a voluntary basis by its members.
Not found an answer? Then please go to the Contact page and Send us an email Message:
webmaster'at'scottishbeekeepers.org.uk