One of the first things we noticed early this spring was the number of bees buzzing about the yard. We have honeybees, bumblebees and mason bees!
An e-mail just landed in my in-box with a link to a Science Daily report about why bees are dying in professional apiaries, or honey bee colony depopulation syndrome.
Honeybees are dying - that's uncontested (although thankfully not in our garden). However, as far as I know, there isn't consensus as to why. This article points to a parasitic infection as a cause. But what caused the parasite? And what about pesticide use??? Skepticism crept in as I read further... So what treatment has proved to be successful in eradicating the parasite? Wait for it... the treatment is a good dose of antibiotics. Here's a link to the article in case you're interested.
If you care about the bees (and we all should since they pollinate at least 30% of our food supply), then check out Plan Bee Central and read their special report about what we can all do. And taking a page from the Ben & Jerry's cause-related ice cream playbook, next time you're at your local grocery store, pick up some Haagen-Daz Honeybee Ice Cream (and check out their Help the Honeybees site, too - it's so worth the wait! It's open on my computer and I hear birdsong in the background as I type - delightful!). The ice cream is delicious, and it'll help save bees!
Thanks to Janette for the Plan Bee/HD links!
(Photo: Bee & plum blossoms, Shiv's plum tree, planting strip 4/09)
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