Moffat is a small spa town at the head of Annandale, where the Annan rises on the southern slopes of the Southern Uplands in some of the loneliest hill country in Scotland. The High Street lime trees and the Ram statue garden give local urban forage; the Annan's willows run through the town. The Grey Mare's Tail National Nature Reserve, a short drive north above Moffat, protects a spectacular upland landscape with ling heather, cotton grass and bilberry in the high corries. The sheltered valley floor below the town carries hawthorn and sycamore in the farm hedgerows; bramble covers the sheltered riverbank scrub; and the Moffat Hills carry some of the finest dark ling heather in southern Scotland.
Collectors attend swarms in the High Street lime trees and the Colvin Fountain garden borders, along the Annan willows through the town and south toward Beattock, in the hawthorn hedgerows on the valley farm lanes, and on the heather and bilberry ground of the Moffat Hills above the town toward White Coomb.
Nearest BBKA-affiliated associations to help with swarm collection and local advice.
CA6 4HN· approx. 53 km
Visit websiteCA13 0AU· approx. 75 km
CA12 4NT· approx. 83 km
Association data sourced from the British Beekeepers Association directory via SwarmBase.
The mild Solway climate means spring starts earlier than most of Scotland. Blackthorn and hawthorn open the year; sycamore is important. Oilseed rape is moderate. Lime carries June in Dumfries and Stranraer. Galloway Forest contributes bilberry, rowan and late ling heather; coastal sea-campion on the Solway adds character. Himalayan balsam along the Nith gives a long late flow, and ivy on whitewashed cottage walls closes the year.
More on beekeeping in Dumfries and GallowayReport it in under a minute and a trained local beekeeper will arrange safe collection.
