Bees are dying worldwide and something needs to be done to save them.

As you may already know, or can tell from the pictures above, bees are dying at an exponential rate, which is not good. Everyone needs to know that saving bees is essential to the future of agriculture and in turn to the foods we eat everyday. Humans are responsible to a great degree for the decline in the bee population worldwide. Bees were never meant to be harmed but there are several reasons why or how the actions of humans have affected the bee population globally.

Here are some of the reasons for the decline in overall bee populations around the world:

1. Less farmers are planting plant forage for bees around their fields of crops which means there is less sources of food for bees while they are pollinating.

2. The increase in genetically modified crops has meant that there are more plants in fields than previously but this doesn't provide more nectar for bees as genetically modified plants do not produce as much nectar as crops that have not been genetically modified.

3. Migratory beekeeping, the practice of moving bee colonies from field to field or farm to farm for pollination, puts colonies at risk as they may be lost during transportation.

4. One of the most significant reasons bees are dying in the world is due to the use of pesticides being sprayed to kills pests that affect crops or bees, but themselves are harming bees. In the US this past summer, aerial spraying of pesticides to kill mosquitos that possibly were carrying the Zika virus had drastic effects. Unfortunately, the pesticide spray used killed millions of bees across the US.

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If bees become extinct, roughly one third of the crops humans eat would have to be pollinated some other way, and up to 75% of crops would produce less, affecting not only the supply but the price, which would likely go up significantly.The global economic benefit of bees’ natural pollination is roughly 396 Billion Canadian dollars. This is not a “real” value because it does not take into consideration what would happen if natural pollination by bees completely stopped.

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One way that the average citizen can help with the decrease in the bee population is that they could make a bee bath and plant some flowers that would attract bees. Some examples of flowers/plants that attract bees include: Crocus, Heather, Lavender, Aster, Coneflower, Cosmos, Clover, Sedum, Rudbekia, and Alyssum. All of these types of flowers can be purchased at most garden centres for only a few dollars per package of seeds.

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A source of water near flowers is just as important to bees when they are flying from flower to flower, pollinating as they go. Setting up a bee bath near flowers is a helpful way to ensure bees don’t get thirsty while they are busy pollinating.

 

How To Make a Bee Bath

1. Get a plate or bowl that has a bit of a lip to it and place some small rocks in/on it.

   2. Add some water and leave enough space above the water for bees to land safely on the rocks while having a drink.

   3. Place the bath on the ground in your garden.

   4. Add enough water daily for bees to drink.

   5. Clean the bath every few days so that the water is always nice and clean.

   6. Put out a second bath when the first one needs to be cleaned so that bees always have a place to land and get a drink.

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The cost of setting up a simple bee bath and a pot of flowers could be as little as 15 to 20 dollars. This is a small price to pay if doing so can help the dying bee population.

In urban areas where it may not be possible to introduce a bee colony to your garden or yard, a bee bath and some flowers is a great start to helping the bee population. We can’t change the bee population overnight, but we can start an evolution of change that could have positive long-lasting effects.

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Honey Nut Cheerios and Vesey’s Seeds are offering free seeds through their website: www.bringbackthebees.ca