County Antrim has the oldest beekeeping association in Northern Ireland: the Mid Antrim Beekeeping Association, founded in 1941, which keeps an apiary and honeybee observation house near Cullybackey. The East Antrim Beekeepers' Association, formed the same year, covers the area from Glenarm to Whiteabbey, Ballyclare and Doagh. Each autumn the Ulster Beekeepers' Association holds its annual honey show at CAFRE's Greenmount Campus outside Antrim town; it is open to the public, with local honey on sale.
Braidwater Apiaries in Ballymena raises the native dark honey bee on sites across the county and sells honey, queens and nucs. Red Hut Honey in Newtownabbey is run by a retired biology teacher whose bees forage mainly along the hedgerows of the Belfast hills above Glengormley, and on borage, bramble and dandelion in a large organic garden.
The hedgerow is central here: hawthorn, blackthorn, willow and bramble line small fields across the county and give colonies a long, continuous season rather than a few enormous crops. Clover-rich grazing pasture — the mainstay of Antrim farming — supplies the summer flow. On the plateau and through the Glens, ling heather flowers from August, and beekeepers within reach of the uplands can take a heather crop. Ivy matters more in Ireland than most people realise: it flowers heavily into October and gives colonies a substantial late store, and some producers bottle it separately. Belfast's parks, the Lagan corridor and mature suburban gardens support a growing number of city apiaries.
Soft-set clover and hedgerow honey through summer; darker heather from the Glens; distinctive white, sharply flavoured ivy honey in late autumn.
Flowering times are typical and can shift by two to three weeks with the weather, season and altitude.
Belfast, Ballymena, Antrim, Carrickfergus, Larne, Newtownabbey, Ballycastle, Lisburn
Ivy flowers from September into November and is a heavy nectar source in Ireland's mild autumn. Its honey sets almost white and hard, with a sharp, slightly medicinal flavour. Most is left on the hive as winter stores, but some producers take a little off — it is an acquired taste and a genuinely local one.
Yes, in small quantities from beekeepers with access to the uplands. Ling flowers from August on the basalt plateau and the honey comes off in September. As with all heather crops it is weather-dependent and limited, so contact producers directly in late summer.
Use the listing details to choose how to buy, then contact the producer before travelling.
The directory does not track live stock or harvest dates. Availability, collection, delivery, prices and seasonal varieties can change, so ask the producer to confirm what is currently available.
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