Save Our Bees!
When we sit down to enjoy our breakfast in the morning, most of us aren’t thinking about bees, but we probably should! Without bees, our breakfast (along with our lunch, dinner and dessert) would be a lot less exciting. But it’s not just our honey nut Cheerios we’d miss without bees. According to most estimates, bees are responsible for one in three bites you eat every day. Most fruits, nuts, berries, and other fresh produce are dependent upon the efficient pollination techniques of bees. Your coveted cup of morning coffee has bees to thank--40% of the world’s coffee trees are self-sterile and rely on cross-pollination from bees. Even milk and dairy products would be much harder to come by without bees since the diet of cows includes pollinator-dependent alfalfa and clover. Essentially, without bees, you’d be left with mostly grains for breakfast, and a whole lot less nutritious food that we’ve come to expect in our diets.
But despite their importance in maintaining agricultural biodiversity and bringing colorful, delicious foods to your plate, bees are under threat. Pesticides, habitat loss and disease have caused bee populations to take a sharp decline. Experts began tracking a decrease in colony populations in the 1940’s which has only been made worse by how ubiquitous the use of bee killing pesticides has become. Some estimates say we are losing a third of our native bees each year. Sadly, this rapid decline could pose a huge threat to our global food supply.
Last week in the world of Nature Links, we learned about bees and just how crucial they are to our ecosystem. Although many participants shared stories of bee stings and a fear of bees, the knowledge of just how important bees are in pollinating the plants that bring us the foods we love had us all thinking twice about the much-maligned insect. We studied bee behavior, including how honey bees communicate with each other about where to find the most delicious nectar and how pollination happens so efficiently when bees are involved. Our community came away with a few ideas for how we can help protect this amazingly intelligent and important creature. Here are a few…
1. Plant a Bee Garden
One of the largest threats to bees is habitat loss. Bees need locations to build safe homes near lots of nutritious food sources. Planting bee gardens, full of plants that are rich in nectar and pollen can help create new habitats where bees can thrive. Using pots, planters, gardens and window boxes, gardeners can establish bee habitats near their homes. Bees love plants like lavender, rosemary, sunflowers, cosmos and bee balm. Planting a colorful, bee-friendly garden can help bees thrive and makes us happy too!
2. Go Pesticide Free in Your Garden and Green Space
The use of synthetic pesticides, especially those classified as “neonicotinoids” is harmful for bees and contributes significantly to Colony Collapse Disorder. Although large-scale farms are responsible for a great deal of these pesticides pervading the environment, we can also do our part at home. Look for alternative, pesticide-free solutions to greening your grass and gardens.
3. Support Local Beekeepers and Organic Farmers
Did you know that humans have been keeping bees for thousands and thousands of years? Many historians believe that beekeeping predates modern agriculture, and that beekeeping is what made farming possible. Today’s beekeepers are up against a severely declining bee population. You can support beekeepers and organic farmers, who do their part in helping to protect bees, by purchasing local honey and produce.
4. Become an Advocate for Bees
Lots of folks have a story to tell about getting stung by a bee-like insect (most of which actually involve wasps, not bees), so bees can harbor a very negative reputation. But more people need to know just how much we truly rely on bees to help produce the foods we love to eat! Learn more about bees, like we did with Nature Links, and spread the word about how we need to protect them!
