The hum of bees is the voice of the garden.

Elizabeth Lawrence

Santry Community Garden is home to our very own Native Irish Honey Bee, officially known as Apis mellifera mellifera (A.m.m.).  Researchers from Ireland and Switzerland, describe it as a "dark, resilient subspecies of the European honey bee", that is uniquely adapted to Ireland's cool and temperate climate. They have also noted that a "significant pure population" of this bee remains in Ireland (Hasset et al., 2018), despite factors such as hybridization of bee species (i.e., replacing A.m.m. queens with queens from other Apis species), and the general impact humans, and human activity, continue to have on bee populations. Our Native Irish Honey Bee is regarded as being under threat.  Thankfully there are groups like the Native Irish Honey Bee Society (NIHBS), the Federation of Irish Beekeepers Association (FIBA), and the Irish Native Rare Breed Society (INRBS), who are committed to the conservation of our Native Irish Honey Bee, and so are we. 

We have a dedicated team of qualified beekeepers at Santry Community Garden. Finbarr, Rory, and Tony do a terrific job of looking after our bees and we are grateful for all the work they do. We can have up to half a million bees at the height of the season. A hive during the summer can have between seventy and seventy-five thousand bees. The garden and surrounding parkland is a perfect environment for the bees as it offers plenty of flora, fauna, and woodland. We know our beautiful garden helps our bees make delicious honey!

We are aware of threats posed to our bees. Our team are always mindful of the Varroa mite (Varroa destructor) which is the most serious problem affecting the health of honey bees in Ireland today. It was introduced to Ireland in 1998 and has had a devastating effect on our native bee population. The Native Irish Honey Bee Society explains that this parasitic mite attaches itself to the bee and feeds off the larvae and adults. This mite causes enormous damage to the bees and places great stress on the hive. 'Treatment' often means that the hive needs to be treated with chemicals, but we do not use chemicals to treat our hives. 

Click on the slideshow below to see our apiary, hives, and our wonderful beekeepers. 

Sources:

Jack Hassett, Keith A Browne, Grace P McCormack, Elizabeth Moore, Gabrielle Soland & Michael Geary.  A Significant pure population of the dark European honey bee (Apis mellifera mellifera) remains in Ireland in Journal of Apiculture Research. Vol. 57, pages 337-350. Published: 8th May 2018. Click this link to the full article https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2018.1433949