10 Things You Can Do To Help Save The Bees

Bees are in trouble, and it is mostly because of us !e have destroyed much of their natural habitat, "e have poisoned their food and in the case of honeybees, "e have used and abused them for our o"n purposes "hile not giving enough attention to their needs and "elfare Honeybees have been evolving for a very long time # the fossil record goes bac$ at least 100 million years # and they became remar$ably successful due to their adaptability to different climates, varied flora and their tolerance of many shapes and si%es of living accommodation They became attractive to humans because of their uni&ue ability to produce useful things, apparently out of thin air' honey, "a( and propolis )ntil the nineteenth century, they "ere $ept in pots, s$eps, bas$ets and a variety of "ooden bo(es intended more*or*less to imitate their natural habitat of choice, the hollo" tree !ith the invention of the +movable frame+ hive, the second half of that century sa" an e(ponential gro"th in commercial*scale bee$eeping, and by the time motor vehicles became "idely available, bee$eeping on a "idespread and industrial scale became a practical possibility Since then, bees have been treated in rather the same "ay as battery hens' routinely dosed "ith antibiotics and miticides in an effort to $eep them producing, despite the gro"ing problems of diseases and parasites and insecticide*treated plants that have led to the emergence of so*called +Colony Collapse Disorder+, especially in the massive bee* farming operations in the )S, -t doesn+t have to be li$e this Some bee$eepers have reali%ed that, if bees are to become healthy enough to develop resistance to disease and the ability to adapt to pests, then they have to be treated differently # and not .ust by bee$eepers Here are some things you can do to help the bees' 1. Stop using insecticides - especially for 'cosmetic' gardening. There are better "ays of dealing "ith pests * especially biological controls /odern pesticides are e(tremely po"erful and many are long*lasting and very to(ic to bees and other insects Removing all unnecessary pesticides from the environment is probably the single most important thing we can do to help save the bees. 2. Avoid seeds coated with systemic insecticides. Be"are * many farm seeds are no" coated "ith Clothianidin and related systemic insecticides, "hich cause the entire plant to become to(ic to bees and all other insects that may feed on it The same coatings may soon appear on garden seeds Chec$ your seed pac$ets carefully * and if in doubt, as$ the manufacturer for full information 3. Read the labels on garden compost - beware hidden illers! Some garden and potting composts are on sale that contain -midacloprid * a deadly insecticide manufactured by Bayer -t is often disguised as +vine "eevil protection+ or similar, but it is highly to(ic to all insects and all soil life, including beneficial earth"orms The insecticide is ta$en up by plants, and if you use this compost in hanging bas$ets, bees see$ing "ater from the moist compost may be $illed

". #reate natural habitat. -f you have space in your garden, let some of it go "ild to create a safe haven for bees and other insects and small mammals 0ardens that are too tidy are not so "ildlife* friendly $. %lant bee-friendly flowers. You can buy "ildflo"er seeds from many seed merchants, and they can be so"n in any spare patch of ground * even on "aste ground that is not being cultivated Some +guerilla gardeners+ even plant them in public par$s and "aste ground &. %rovide a site for beehives. -f you have some space to spare, you could offer a corner of your garden to a local bee$eeper as a place to $eep a hive or t"o They "ill need to have regular access, so bear this in mind "hen considering a site '. (a e a wild bee house. 1roviding a simple bo( as a place for feral bees to set up home is one step short of ta$ing up bee$eeping, but may appeal to those "ho "ant to have bees around but don+t "ant to get involved "ith loo$ing after them ). Support your local bee eepers. /any people believe that local honey can help to reduce the effects of hayfever and similar allergies, "hich is one good reason to buy honey from a local bee$eeper rather than from supermar$ets, most of "hich source honey from thousands of miles a"ay -f you can, find a bee$eeper "ho does not use any chemicals in their hives and as$ for pure comb honey for a real treat *. +earn about bees - and tell others. Bees are fascinating creatures that relatively fe" people ta$e the trouble to understand 2ead a good boo$ about bees and bee$eeping, and "ho $no"s * you might decide to * 1,. -ecome a bee eeper. -t is easier than you might imagine to become a bee$eeper * and you don+t need any of the e(pensive e&uipment in the glossy catalogues3 4verything you need to $eep bees successfully can be made by anyone "ith a fe" simple tools' if you can put up a shelf, you can probably build a beehive3 5or details, see www.biobees.com 666 %hil #handler is author of The Barefoot Beekeeper and has a busy discussion forum for natural beekeeping on his web site at www.biobees.com Your contact for natural beekeeping in this area is: