ByRobyn Harris
Supporting bees and other pollinators There are now schemes where you can own a part-share in a bee colony. One example is Adopt-a-Hive Ltd based in Oswestry in Shropshire. They aim to support bees and raise public awareness. Their membership pack includes: a bee identification guide; lists of ‘good bee plants’; a packet of wildflower…
ByRobyn Harris
Last week I began to explore some of the threats challenging the honey bee. In addition to parasites the bees are also suffering from: Habitat loss Farming habits in England have changed dramatically in the last century. We now have fewer ancient hedgerows, bigger fields and more mechanised practices. This has resulted in large areas…
ByRobyn Harris
Issues facing the honey bee Scientists are still unsure why so many bees are dying. Various different causes have been proposed: parasites, loss of suitable habitat, bad weather, pesticides. It is probably a combination of some or all of these factors. Parasites Bees can suffer from several parasites including varroa and acarine mites, nosema fungus…
ByRobyn Harris
Last week I began looking at the life of a bee colony. As the numbers grow the colony can reach the point at which it becomes too big for the hive, the worker bees start turning one of the female eggs into a queen. They do this by surrounding the egg with lots of royal…
ByRobyn Harris
Back in June 2015 the campaign group 38 Degrees held an event in Westminster to “arm our MPs with everything they need to know about bees and bee-killing pesticides.” That was over 2 years ago but bees and pesticides are very much still big news with further headlines hitting social media recently. It’s heartening to see that…
ByTony Samara
I believe that the extensive use of mobile phones, microwave ovens and other gadgets that emit specific radiation frequencies are seriously damaging our bee populations as well as our energetic bodies. I therefore emphasise the benefits to the environment created by minimising their useage. Instead utilise SMS rather than making long phone calls on mobile…