Helping the Bees

Do you remember hearing about something called Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD on the news? Years ago, CCD was all over the news. Articles and commentaries seemed to be everywhere.

Well, the news moved on to other issues but the problem remains. Colony Collapse Disorder is still a serious problem. First identified in 2006, studies indicate that in only two years more that a third of all managed hives have died off or been lost due to CCD.

Bees are important pollinators for foods like sunflowers, soybeans, apples, peaches, pears, pumpkins, cucumbers, cherries, blue berries, raspberries, strawberries, peppers, squash, almonds, cashews, clover (hay for animals), tomatoes, and watermelon. The jury is still out on the cause. Pesticides, environmental changes, pollution, mites, drought, unknown contagious disease, pollen or nectar from genetically modified plants and even RF radiation from cell phone towers have been blamed.

So, what can people do to help the bee population? Farmer or not; whether you live in town or the country, you can help.

• Judiciously use non-natural pesticides. Even trying to kill off that pesky ant colony in the back yard with some chemical can easily get into a bee colony's food chain.
• Use natural pesticides and natural Integrated Pest Management techniques when possible.
• If you have a personal garden or market garden, plant at least 1/4 of it in heirloom varieties of vegetables.
• Put together a "bee pot". A "bee pot" is a planter with bee-friendly annual flowers that will provide nectar and pollen. Some great flowers to plant include shasta daisy, violets, sedum, bluebells, spearmint, black eyed susan, sunflowers, calendula, purple coneflower, and poppy. It is best to plant annuals that are native to your area.
  

For more information on how you can help the world's most important pollinators, contact your local extension service.