North American Honey Bee (Apis millifera)
It began early on a mid-spring day, this love affair with the bees. We were sitting on our screened back porch when my husband noticed insect activity in the sky above our backyard. It turned out to be an incredible swarm of bees. They seemed frenzied and that made me curious. At the same time that my husband noticed the swarm, we heard a squeak and a scurrying sound coming from the garage roof or maybe it was in the vicinity of the Wisteria that grows behind the garage. We wondered what had made the noise but we were distracted and our attention quickly returned to the bees. As I watched, I noticed the bees were forming a clump on the outside of one of our silver maple trees. “A tertiary hive!” I announced. It was something I had read about years before. I watched for as long as my schedule would allow and then continued intermittently throughout the next half hour or so. My husband wondered what we should do about the bees. I wondered the same. If they remained as they were, could they survive? There was already plenty of bad luck going around in honeybee land -- mites have been a big problem, but now Colony Collapse Disorder seems to be the main culprit (although no one knows for sure). I suspect that environmental poisons may play a role in this issue, but there are just so many suspects threatening the future of these fuzzy little humming musicians. I didn’t want to add to the downfall of the honeybees by interfering in this hive’s particular struggle to regain some lost ground. I adopted a “let’s just wait and see” approach.
Slowly, the bees settled one upon the other and then proceeded to descend into one of the many hollows old growth silver maples provide to the natural world. Soon enough I realized that a poor baby squirrel, who mistook his hollow for the bees’, made the squeal and scurrying noise we had heard earlier. He seemed in pretty good shape as I watched him cautiously search out his true abode. I hoped he wasn’t stung too much.
Later that day I took a few moments to check on our bees. They resumed their usual bee behavior. Zooming into their hive to do their cute little bee dance, and zooming out again. It was mesmerizing.
My children -- not exactly insect lovers -- had to get used to the fact that the bees were going to be allowed to stay; that, in fact, we welcomed them. It was a little unnerving for one of my daughters who recently developed a fear of all crawling and flying creatures but she has managed. They are quite high up in the tree, our bees, but seem so much closer when we’re out on the deck. That took some getting used to, too. The kids realize now that bees have a right to a safe and healthy home just like they do. It helps that we call them “our bees”. And now, we’re all happy that the colony was established in our organic backyard, in trees that are never sprayed. Happy too, the flowers upon which the bees alight and feed are organic and varied.
We may have a tree full of honey that we’ll never taste but somehow that doesn’t matter. We have our bees and they live in a natural hive that we hope remains a healthy one. It feels like somehow we’re contributing to the safety of honeybees by providing a safe haven for this one hive.
You may not have the good fortune to have a bee tree but there are several things families can do to help protect these delicate yet magnificent pollinators.
• Respect Bee Homes. Bees deserve a happy, healthy home too.
• Educate kids about bees. Remind them to stay calm around bees and that bees usually don’t sting. In fact, honeybees are often almost docile when sipping nectar. You can get pretty close to a honeybee sipping from a clover blossom. Male bees can be aggressive but can’t sting. Look for big eyes, and no prominent striping to identify a male bee. Don’t let your kids walk barefoot (although you could never stop me from doing that when I was a child!) and avoid wearing perfume, as you will certainly attract a bee if you smell like a flower!
• Buy local honey. Studies have shown that there are benefits to eating locally made honey, especially for those with allergies. Besides having a good nutritional profile, honey has healing properties and honey is yummy. Just ask Pooh! Although honey makes more sense nutritionally than refined sugar, it does have a similar affect on blood sugar and honey often contains botulinum endospores, which can cause harm in infants under the age of 12 months.
• Bees need water just like most living things. Use shallow bowls dug partially into the ground and remember to change frequently to avoid the laying and hatching of mosquito eggs. Refilling the water is a perfect job for a young child. She can learn her connection to the natural world by caring for the bees.
• Cut Back (or Out) Lawn Pesticides and Fertilizers. They can weaken the bees’ immune systems. Practice natural lawn care methods including, integrated pest management and biological controls. Gardens Alive offers many products to help you create a natural lawn.
• Cultivate Bee-Friendly Plants like asters, zinnias, geraniums, hollyhocks, roses, veggies, herbs, honeysuckle, butterfly bush, fruit trees, holly, and redbud trees. A quick Internet search will reveal hundreds of plants from which to choose. Remember, bees tend to be most attracted to blue, purple and yellow flowers and 10 or more bee-friendly plants support the most visitors.
• Clover is a favorite of bees and a natural nitrogen fixer for lawns. Let it be. Did you know the quality of lawn seed was once judged by the amount of clover seed it contained? The more balanced the mix, the better.
• Plant wildflowers in common areas near your home and along the roadways.
Bees pollinate about 1/3 of all crops – they’re very important. Let’s work together to make life a little sweeter!
Sources for local honey: Honey Locator and Local Harvest, and please visit Honey Bee Preservation
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