Bees in North Queensland: Keeping, Natives and What to Plant

Which bees live here, whether you can keep them, and how the season works in your part of Australia.

Hive and stingless bee box under a mango tree in North Queensland

Stingless bees: yes! Your region is prime country for native stingless hives, no registration, no varroa, superb pollination. Start with the stingless guide and the hive buying guide.

The bees you will see in North Queensland

Tap any bee for identification details. Images are AI-generated illustrations.

Keeping bees here

The tropics flip the calendar: the dry season (May to October) is prime beekeeping, while the wet season tests every hive with humidity, beetle blooms and reduced foraging. Stingless bees (including Tetragonula hockingsi) do brilliantly here, often better than European honey bees. Queensland Bee 123 monthly varroa reporting applies.

Registration: required in Queensland before your first honey bee hive. Details, costs and links on the state registration guide. Stingless bees never require registration.

Swarm season

July to September, ahead of the build-up. If a swarm lands in your garden, here is what to do.

The flying year

Dry-season flowering (paperbarks, bloodwoods) drives the honey flow. In the wet, colonies hunker down; keep hives ventilated, shaded and off the ground.

Plant for your bees

Bees need flowers in every season, and your vegetable garden can supply most of them. Borage, lavender, rosemary, alyssum and sunflowers carry the gaps between crop flowering. The North Queensland grow guide shows exactly what to plant this month, and the free app turns it into a plan.

Keep records the easy way. The Planting Season beekeeping app logs inspections, varroa washes and harvests per hive, with reminders tuned to North Queensland. Free to start.

More bee regions

South East Queensland North Queensland Northern Rivers NSW Sydney & Coastal NSW Melbourne & Victoria Adelaide & SA Perth & WA Canberra & ACT Tasmania Darwin & Top End

Get the monthly Australian backyard guide

What to plant, flock and hive jobs for the month, in one short email. No spam.

Unsubscribe any time.

Images on this page are AI-generated illustrations.