Leicestershire has Charnwood Forest, the rolling pasture of the Wolds, and the ancient parkland of Bradgate and Belvoir — a central English beekeeping county with a deep tradition of hobbyist apiculture.
Oilseed rape and field beans drive the arable flow. Sycamore and horse chestnut in the market towns build the mid-May crop; lime dominates June in Leicester, Loughborough and Market Harborough. Charnwood brings sweet chestnut, bracken and patches of bilberry; Bradgate and Belvoir parks add ancient lime and oak. Bramble is universal; rosebay willowherb fills ex-quarry ground around Mountsorrel. Ivy on the red-brick farmhouses and old pub gardens closes the season strongly.
Leicestershire & Rutland Beekeepers' Association runs Leicester, Market Harborough, Loughborough, Melton Mowbray and Hinckley branches. Collectors are as practised with thatched Rutland cottages as with Leicester's Victorian terraces.
We prioritise coverage county-wide. Towns with a dedicated page below; more town pages rolling out soon.
Nearest BBKA-affiliated associations that support swarm collection in this area.
CV11 5DN· approx. 27 km
Visit websiteCV21 2JT· approx. 30 km
Visit websiteCV3 4AQ· approx. 36 km
Visit websiteDE13 0BN· approx. 41 km
Visit websiteNN3 7AX· approx. 42 km
Visit websitePE9 4HZ· approx. 44 km
Visit websiteAssociation data sourced from the British Beekeepers Association directory via SwarmBase.
Report it in under a minute and a trained local beekeeper will arrange safe collection.
