Watch this amazing TED talk on bees.
Bees pollinate a third of our food supply -- they don’t just make honey! -- but colonies have been disappearing at alarming rates in many parts of the world due to the accumulated effects of parasitic mites, viral and bacterial diseases, and exposure to pesticides and herbicides.
It is fantastic.
Marla Spivak, University of Minnesota professor of entomology and 2010 MacArthur Fellow, tries as much as possible to think like bees in her work to protect them. They’re “highly social and complex” creatures, she says, which fuels her interest and her research.
Spivak has developed a strain of bees, the Minnesota Hygienic line, that can detect when pupae are infected and kick them out of the nest, saving the rest of the hive. Now, Spivak is studying how bees collect propolis, or tree resins, in their hives to keep out dirt and microbes.
She is also analyzing how flowers’ decline due to herbicides, pesticides and crop monoculture affect bees’ numbers and diversity. Spivak has been stung by thousands of bees in the course of her work.
GEELONG is seeing a lot of interest in home bee-keeping, as more and more people become interested in harvesting their own honey and increasing their garden pollination rates.
Plus, bees are a lovely insect to see floating around the trees and plants.
The GWNH reporting good attendance at their classes.
The Geelong Beekeepers Club are a good resource for anyone looking to learn more - I'm planning on attending the next meeting as I have a wild hive in my yard.
If you have some buzzing around you garden, you'll be thrilled at the increase in pollination of your fruit and vegetables not to mention flowers. Here's a good resource to identifying the species in your area.
The ABC has reported that in Tasmania, beekeepers say they will refuse to pollinate certain vegetables if the moratorium on genetically modified crops is lifted in Tasmania, which would lead to millions of dollars in lost revenue.
Tasmania is currently GM-free, but the state government is conducting a review of the ban.
I'M looking at bee-keeping sometime soon.
After several years of reading about and listening to keen apiarists talk about the highs and lows of bees, I think now is a be a good time to stop talking and start walking.
In the latest Weekly Times there's a good little article on an Ocean Grove chap whose taken the leap - inspiring stuff.
Now I have to join the local bee-keeping society and start the process.
Be aware of the use of pesticides in your garden as many can harm bees.
I'll keep you informed.
