Birmingham is the second-largest city in England and the heart of the West Midlands, with a canal network denser than Venice and a diverse population that has brought beekeeping traditions from around the world into a vibrant urban scene. The Birmingham BKA is one of the largest city associations in England, and the city's parks — Cannon Hill Park, Sutton Park, Edgbaston Reservoir and the allotment fringe of the inner suburbs — combined with the lime-avenue canopy of the Victorian and Edwardian streets, give city bees a more productive season than the urban density suggests.
Collectors regularly attend swarms in the older garden remnants and lime trees of the Jewellery Quarter and Edgbaston conservation areas, along the canal network towpath willows and hedgerow margins at Gas Street Basin and the Rea Valley, in the old parkland and walled garden remnants of Cannon Hill Park, and in the chimney stacks and eaves of the older Victorian and Edwardian city-centre and suburban properties.
Nearest BBKA-affiliated associations to help with swarm collection and local advice.
B13 8QG· approx. 5 km
Visit websiteB74 2YT· approx. 10 km
Visit websiteB91 1LG· approx. 11 km
Visit websiteAssociation data sourced from the British Beekeepers Association directory via SwarmBase.
Spring is carried on blossoming garden cherry, blackthorn and horse chestnut in parks like Sutton, Lickey Hills and Cannon Hill. Urban limes — both small-leaved and hybrid — dominate the June flow, especially along the old tram and canal routes. Bramble is universal on allotments and towpaths, and rosebay willowherb flushes the brownfield and rail corridors through July. The Clent and Waseley Hills give a useful edge of hill forage to colonies in the southern fringe, and ivy closes a long urban season.
More on beekeeping in West MidlandsReport it in under a minute and a trained local beekeeper will arrange safe collection.
