HiveHaven

01/03/2026

Paronella Park – Mena Creek North Qld 🌿

Such a treat to visit Paronella Park to see & talk all things native bees!

Paronella Park is a magical place with such an amazing history. Built in 1929 by Spanish immigrant José & Margarita Paronella. It featured an indoor venue for weddings, grand balls and movies. Outdoor attractions included hillside tunnels, tennis courts, swimming & row boats for hire.

During his lifetime, Jose planted 1000s of native & exotic trees to enhance the park, and despite three cyclones, most of the trees are still standing today. A beautiful heritage listed sanctuary for all those who visit! 💚💚💚

17/02/2026

The rain has cleared & our sunflowers are still standing yeh! We thought we'd try this old heritage variety ‘Evening Sun’ from Eden Seeds. Lots of different shapes, colours & sizes which has made the journey even more special. 🌻🌻🌻

It’s super critical that all species of bees have access to the pollen & nectar that old heritage varieties like this beauty provides. Please avoid any of the new pollen-free varieties that are emerging. They are hybrid plants engineered to be male-sterile, meaning they lack viable anthers to produce pollen. 🌻🌻🌻

BTW Sunflower paintings had a very special significance for Van Gogh: he believed they communicated 'gratitude' & me, we & our bees agree! 🌻🌻🌻

02/01/2026

Lets hope this Brazilian ‘Declaration of Rights for Native Stingless Bees’ starts a global trend!

At Hive Haven we will always remember Dr Cristiano Menezes insights into the Brazilian Native Bee Industry at the 2nd Australian Native Bee Conference in 2019.

In Brazil native bees are integral to the balance of culture & the economy. The Declaration of Rights for Native Stingless Bees, is a landmark document that ecognises the inherent rights of these pollinators, including their right to exist, to maintain healthy populations, to restore their habitats, and to live in a pollution-free environment, among others. 🐝🌱🐝

BTW the 4th Australian Native Bee Network Conference (July 31 - August 2) is open for bookings.

Bees native to the Peruvian part of the Amazon rainforest, who have no sting unlike their European counterparts, have become the first insects in the world to b

21/12/2025

Awesome to present at the BIEPA - Bribie Island Environmental Protection Association Inc. last meetup for the year!

Honestly I learnt sooooo much about Bribie Island & its fragile environment. BIEPA members undertake re-vegetation, turtle & bird monitoring just to name a few.

If you live on Bribie... this might be your tribe!

09/11/2025

Set up pics of today's 'City of Moreton Bay Eco Fest' at the University of the Sunshine Coast Petrie Campus.🐝

The rain held off, which was welcomed by a steady stream of visitors. 🐝

Lots of fun for us to deliver our native bee talks in the USC auditorium & the lab. An amazing facility thankyou! 🐝

Overall a crackerl day with thanks to Tasia & her team at the Moreton Bay Council. 🐝

31/10/2025

A buzzing week in Canberra!

Earlier this year we were approached by Australian Parliament House to install two Australian stingless native bee hives, as they were keen to grow their apiary. This is commendable, as it provides an ‘agricultural focus’ to a wider audience - plus we all know Australian native bees are alot of fun to have around!

These stingless native bees will live the ‘best life’ in the APH staff café courtyard. Parliament House Canberra has 23 hectares of landscaped gardens that range from Australian native bush to formal gardens. Nine hectares are native gardens with 4,500 trees and 135,000 shrubs and groundcovers where they use natural bugs to control pests and don’t use sprays.

Behind the scenes – installations like this are only made possible with the dedication of people like the APH Head Beekeeper – Cormac Farrell who will be on hand to look after the hives and will kindly transport them to a warmer region over winter.

Some of you will remember back in 2018 we installed our first two native bee hives at Australian Parliament with thanks to the help from our local MP Andrew Wallace & support from the Food & Agri-network FAN - so it was very déjà vu to catch up with Andrew, seven years later at the RWA Gala Dinner in the APH Grand Hall, along with AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award Queensland State Winner Nicole McNaughton who is the CEO of the Food & Agribusiness Network FAN.

Food Agribusiness Network FAN
AgriFutures Australia
Andrew Wallace - LNP Federal Member for Fisher
FAN Sunshine Coast - Food Agribusiness Network
Queensland Agriculture

28/10/2025

BIG thanks to Australian Parliament House Head Beekeeper Cormac Farrell for taking time out of your busy schedule to host this group of AgriFutures Australia Rural Women's Award Alumni, DPI & AgriFutures representatives.

We loved learning, how the bees have weaved their way into parliamentary life & their importance for pollination & education.

19/10/2025

Thankyou to the team from 'Moreton Bay Council' for inviting us to speak at the 'Moreton Bay Eco Festival' at the University of the Sunshine Coast Petrie Campus on Sunday 9th November. 🐝

We'll 'bee' presenting in the auditorium & the lab; plus we'll have a market stall. Details to follow! 🐝

City of Moreton Bay

20/09/2025

Our backroads of Glasshouse Country are bursting with macadamia flowers. The trees are dripping & the smell is amazing!

For 1000s of years the bauple nut – now famously known as the macadamia has shared a symbolic relationship with the Australian stingless native bee. The Australian Macadamia Industry has long known that the small size of the Australian stingless native bee enables them to effectively navigate the tiny macadamia flowers resulting in a high rate of nut set.

And with the demand for macadamia products growing globally – the demand for commercial stingless native bee pollination services is increasing. Yeh!

Currently in Australia the macadamia nut value at the farm gate is more than AUD $290 million; making this dynamic industry – one we can ‘bee’ proud of!

BTW - Each year QCWA members nominate a primary product of the year and this year (2025) it is the native Macadamia!

Australian Macadamias
AgriFutures Australia
Queensland Agriculture
Nutworks and the Chocolate Factory
Queensland Country Life
Food Agribusiness Network FAN
Celebrate Glasshouse Country
Glasshouse Country Chamber of Commerce Inc.

17/09/2025

We're loving this warmer weather as its means we can safely make a start on splitting & budding our stingless native bee colonies.

The next couple of months will be busy! 🌻🌻🌻

05/09/2025

SPRING has sprung & our stingless native bees are loving the Daikon Radish flowers.

Daikon Radish is a versatile 'super food' vegetable that both you & your native bees will love! We use the greens & bulbs in salads & soups. We plant a double patch to ensure 'we leave some for the bees' .

After three tough years of wet weather & colony loss across the broarder industry - this season is looking good!

05/08/2025

A positive outcome for this tiny crew of Australian stingless native bees, who have been re-located due to the B2N Rail project.

‘That’s progress’ they say, but it’s always humbling to work with a ‘progressive’ company who take the time to save these stingless native bee ‘nests’ instead of mulching them!

This is a healthy hive and before re-homing into a HiveHaven V9 insulted hive we removed the majority of pollen & honey sacs – just leaving the brood spiral and clean propolis. We do this to reduce the ‘clean-up/recovery’ operation within the hive. Lastly, we remove the bottom plug and clean daily to ensure dripping honey doesn’t accumulate, as we don’t want to attract unwanted pests like the Syrphid Fly and Small Hive Beetle.

Watch this space!