A Guide to Buying Bees
It is important when you are buying bees that you get good quality bees from a known source. The Scottish Beekeepers Association gives the following advice:
“This is a warning to be extra careful if you are offered bees by someone you don’t know. There are unfortunately unscrupulous people out there who will rip off new beekeepers so don’t part with any cash until you have taken some precautions.”
A nuc should have:
- A laying queen of this or the current year
- brood of all stages, i.e. eggs, larvae and sealed brood
- be of 4 to 6 frames with at least one good frame of stores
- be disease free
If you don’t know the seller, ask to see inside the nucs before you buy.
Ask to see the queen and the brood etc. if you are inexperienced try and get an experienced beekeeper to check the bees out before you buy.
“Any reputable seller of bees will be happy for a pre-inspection visit.”
SBA advice.
Where to buy bees
There are a number of reputable supplies of bees throughout the country but please remember to follow the advice above. Firstly, we recommend contacting your local beekeeper’s association.
Find your local association – Scottish Beekeepers Association
We, the South of Scotland Beekeepers Association (SSBKA) based in Dumfries and Galloway, has started to offer its members nuclei of bees. These bees come in six frame polystyrene Paynes nuc box and have a laying queen. We ensure that these nucs are at peak strength before selling them so you can be sure you are getting a strong colony. Nucs will typically be available in June/July.
In order to ensure that our bees are going to good homes, we prefer that the new owners have previous experience of keeping bees or have been on a practical beekeeping course.
For further information, please contact Phil
Some of the members also supply nuclei of bees so please contact us to find out more.