Did you know that most bees are nonaggressive? They really have no interest in us. The only thing we have to offer them is our gardens. They reciprocate by pollinating our plants and they don't even eat the leaves or take a bite out of every tomato, like other garden visitors we won't go into here. It's those cranky wasps and hornets who have the bad attitudes. They suffer from chronic road rage and anything in their path is fair game.
Bee populations have been on the decline in recent years and no one is really sure why. There was speculation on pollution or pesticides, mites or parasites, malnutrition or some combination of causes. It might sound like a trivial matter, but agriculture is greatly dependent on the efforts of the humble honeybee. So while the experts keep searching for an answer, we gardeners can help out by not reaching for the pesticide can so frequently. If you have bees in your area, welcome them. Grow plants they love, that are rich in nectar. Maybe even consider keeping a bee hive on your property. And help the researchers by eating ice cream?
- How to Tell the Difference Between a Bee and a Wasp
- Plants to Attract Bees
- What is Colony Collapse Disorder
- 10 Possible Causes for the Sudden Disappearance of Honeybee Hives
- Eat Ice Cream and Save the Honey Bees!
Photo: David Silverman / Getty Images News
Comments
So true, Marie. I have lots of lavender planted in my garden and the bees are so busy that I can walk through the plants without any problem. The plants are large and there’s no space between them – I have to push my way through the flower stalks. The bees just ignore me and I’ve never been stung. There are so many that there’s an audible buzz as they go busily about their nectar gathering. I’ve even “petted” bumblebees who seem to be “sleeping” in the flowers in the early evening. I like to think that they are as intoxicated by the scent as I am.
I adore honey bees. Although I am very allergic to bee stings (yellowjackets, hornets and wasps) I have never experienced aggression from a honey bee or bumble bee and I live quite harmoniously with them in my gardens. My oregano is nearing its blooming time and I just can’t wait to see it covered with blissful bees.
I’ve been looking to buy a honeycomb home for them to set up house, but have not had any luck.
So be respectful and kind to them and they will bless your flowers all season long.
In response to “Margana”: while loving bees and respecting them is great to hear, getting a “honeycomb home” is not as easy as you probably think it is. Wooden hive bodies with 10 or 12 frames in them is the only way to keep bees. It is the tried-and-true method by professionals and hobbyists and has been for the last 80 or so years.
My husband and I bought and read every book, magazine, and pamphlet we could get our hands on and checked every book and magazine out of the library. We studied them for at least 3 years before we ever bought our first “packages” consisting of 3 lbs. of bees and one bred queen. We bought enough pkgs. for 8 hives our first year. Let me tell you it was more involved than we were ready for. We were naive and thought the bees would just get along nicely while we lived our lives as usual. WRONG! That first Spring and Summer had my husband and I in our bee suits at least 3 times a week. What you do for one hive you generally have to do in all of them so it takes at least 30 minutes to inspect each frame on both sides; make sure the queen is still in there; look for problems and fix them if you can; look for the dreaded Varoa Mites, and Tracheal Mites, and foul brood; compare the number of bees to the last hive you were in (making sure the numbers are up and growing well); watch the entrance for several minutes to see the pollen they’re bringing back in and check the color so you can get a general area of what they’re eating (not that you can do anything about it). While doing all of this with sweat running down your face and in your eyes, and running off your nose making it itch and you have no way of scratching it. You don’t really want to have to close up the hive and walk away to a clear area just to wipe your face and scratch your nose. That would mean even longer in that very hot and sweaty suit. All the while we were looking forward to harvesting honey in the fall. No dice. They all had varying amounts of honey capped off. If we had taken even a small amount we would have had to feed the bees all winter. We let them keep their honey of course.
We are now in our 4th year and now have 22 hives which are registered with the Dept. of Agriculture. They are considered live-stock. You want them registered especially if your bees swarm, or someone decides to sneak out into the bee yard and wants to steal some honey. The same laws apply as if they had stolen cattle.
It is a lot of work having bees. Especially this time of year when the hay is being cut, the garden is partially planted and growing needing water every 4-5 days as well as yard work and watering, etc. etc. And I haven’t even started on the housework, and cooking and baking.
The good news is that we’ll get to harvest honey this year, and will be splitting the hives in September. Good God, then we’ll have 44 hives. Now we get to rent them out for pollinating orchards, etc. All the money and time and total of 7 years and we still have not earned one cent. We love it or we sure wouldn’t be doing it!
Margana, if you’d like to have a hive or two, please read everything on how to set up and care for a hive. Buy your hive bodies and frames from a reputable dealer, as well as buy your bees from a reputable Apiary. Two great bee magazines are “American Bee Journal” and “Bee Culture”. A great book is called, “The ABC and XYZ of Bee Culture”. You can get the book on Amazon.com. The magazines can be found by just adding .com to the end of the names. Bee supples can be found in “Dadant” and “Brushy Mountain Bee Farm” catalogs.
I hope this helps you some.
Bee happy!
Tracy
now if only the millitary would stop spraying junk in the air that kills them.
I recently read an article regarding the heavy decline in bee populations. Researchers are now looking at cell phone usage as a possible culprit. The vast majority of people aren’t going to quit using cell phones so I don’t know how this will end. Remember that bats are also in trouble due to a disease called White-Nose Syndrome. Without bees and bats (both species being major pollinators) we would be in deep, deep trouble!
Tracy, thanks for taking the time to share your expertise!
I’m almost starting to feel sorry for cell phones – almost. They seem to upset everything.
Great reminder about the bees! There are wild hives in a neighbor’s tree. Last year, the hives were not doing well, but the bees managed to make a comeback, so there are honeybees visiting my garden this year.
I just gently push them aside with my gloved hands when I’m working in the garden. You’re right…they are not aggressive at all.
Cameron
Bees are very welcome in my garden, I have never been stung by a Bee, unlike some of the other striped flying objects that insist on being so aggressive!