Clackmannanshire · Swarm collection

Bee swarm in Alva? Help is a minute away.

Alva sits at the foot of the Ochil Hills between Tillicoultry and Menstrie, its former textile industry replaced by light industrial and residential land uses but its setting against the dramatic Ochil escarpment unchanged. The Silver Glen above the town is the most spectacular of the Hillfoot ravines, its waterfall and woodland gorge accessible from the town centre. The Ochil plateau above Silver Glen carries extensive heather moorland and is a well-used late-summer beekeeping resource. The Devon Water flows south of town; oilseed rape on the Carse fields below Alva provides the main April-May flow.

Postcodes we cover
FK12
Where swarms appear in Alva

Typical swarm locations

Collectors attend swarms in the Silver Glen gorge woodland and on the hawthorn scrub of the lower Ochil slopes above the town, in the gardens and wall cavities of the residential streets off Brook Street and Queen Street, on the Devon Water bankside near Cambus, and in the gorse and broom on the hillside paths leading up to the Ochil plateau above the Woodland Park.

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Beekeeping associations near Alva

Nearest BBKA-affiliated associations to help with swarm collection and local advice.

  • Carlisle Beekeepers

    CA6 4HN· approx. 144 km

    Visit website
  • Alnwick Beekeepers

    NE65 9QH· approx. 164 km

    Visit website
  • Cockermouth Beekeepers

    CA13 0AU· approx. 169 km

Association data sourced from the British Beekeepers Association directory via SwarmBase.

Forage in Clackmannanshire

Oilseed rape on the Forth Carse between Alloa, Tullibody and the Stirling boundary is the dominant April-to-May flow, one of the most reliable in central Scotland, and sets fast so requires prompt extraction. White clover follows on the improved lowland pastures and the amenity grasslands of the Alloa park network from June through July. Sycamore on the Devon and Black Devon valley margins and in the Ochil village gardens drives the May gap flow. Hawthorn is prolific on the lower hillside hedgerows and the field boundaries of the Carse. The Ochil Hills above Alva, Tillicoultry and Dollar carry extensive heather moorland from mid-July through September; the steep access tracks allow colonies to be moved up for a late-season heather crop. Bramble on former industrial sites around Alloa and on the Ochil lower slopes extends the summer forage into August. Himalayan balsam is establishing along the Devon Water corridor. Ivy on the older sandstone buildings of Alloa and Clackmannan closes the calendar in October.

More on beekeeping in Clackmannanshire
Nearby towns

Swarm help in neighbouring towns

Seen a swarm in Alva?

Report it in under a minute and a trained local beekeeper will arrange safe collection.