I was alarmed when I first heard about bee colonies collapsing in 2007; entire colonies of bees either dead or simply vanished. Fingers point to GMO crops, pesticides, parasitic mites, disease, etc. It’s such a dire situation apparently, Monsanto went on the offensive and publicly refuted any blame on pesticides and even bought out a bee research firm[1].

The small, common honey bee we’re familiar with is not the only pollinator, in fact its not even native to North America. The honey bee was originally imported from Europe back in the Colonial era. There are a host of other native insects that also fill the pollinator role. The problem lies with unrestricted pesticide use that may harm pollinator populations across the board. Such as the dramatic decline of the monarch butterfly currently blamed on heavy pesticide use (along with loss of habitat to corn, and loss of their preferred diet the milkweed).

Speculators are saying our food supply is in danger because we’re losing our pollinators. To get an idea of what this means, look to an apple growing region in China where they live a bee-less reality. The farmers there hand pollinate apple blossoms after killing off all their bees[2]. This is not a sustainable practice for industrial farmers in the States. Perhaps before jumping on the “save the bees!” bandwagon, take a critical look at the state of beekeeping.

Industrial beekeepers ship their bees from one end of the country to the other to meet the demands of monoculture crops (such as corn and almonds). They subject their bees to stress of travel, non-stop pollinating, and feed them processed carbohydrates (HFCS). GMO crops are implicated for creating holes in the human gut barrier creating immune problems like allergies. The same is happening in bees and weakening the bee’s immune system.

Queen bees in the wild mate with many (ludicrously many) male drones to diversify their genes (make them resilient and strong) whereas commercial bees are products of heavy inbreeding (sound familiar with chicken folks and disease resistance?). They are artificially inseminated with select sperms or given very limited breeding partners. Inbreeding leads to weak bees; shorter life span and prone to disease.  As a result of this type of breeding regimen commercial bees are weak, they are subject to chemicals to control bee diseases and parasites which end up in their honey which is in turn sold to humans for consumption.

Bee’s also bring back pesticides sprayed on crops to share with the colony and contaminate honey.

The state with the most to lose is California with their many monoculture crops. The media is very vocal about any distress to the farms in California such as the current drought gripping the state. Strangely enough, they sensationalize CA droughts and don’t mention farms on the east coast are fine and people need not fear a lettuce shortage.

Though it is unclear if there is a single and sole reason for bee colony collapse, the beekeeping system was a disaster waiting to happen due to the stress of industrialized farming: the cycle of stressful transportation, pesticides, inbreeding, poor nutrition, etc. Honey is so easily accessible at the grocers, no thought is given to the condition of its producer, the honey bee.

Consumers need to raise their awareness about food and realize the ugly side of industrialization is not just isolated to beef and poultry. Instead of being scared of food shortages because of disappearing bees, remember this: California is not the only state with farms. Simply look to your own backyard to help save bees. Turn barren suburban landscapes into hospitable oasis for bees. Add some flowering plants and use natural pesticides. Paul Gautschi (“Back to Eden“) swears by garlic and jalapeño pepper spray.

 

 

Source:

1. Huffington Post
2. University of Minnesota Extension

Recommended supplemental media:

More Than Honey – documentary uses state of the art technology to eloquently show the state of honey bees.

Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us – documentary goes beyond the theorized causes and looks deeper at the industrialized bee keeping system.

Silence of the Bees – PBS Nature documentary describes various theories on why bee colonies are collapsing.

1 part wet wood stove pellet (make sure its pure wood)
1 part fine pine bark
1 part peat moss (optional) can substitute coconut coir instead of peat
1 part coarse sand

For a starter soil you want something fine and light.  You also want to have something that  doesn’t dry out too quickly.  It must have enough strength to hold the plants roots together as well.  Starter soil is available at most greenhouse supply and home and garden centers but its easy to make.  If you grow lots of plants its better in our experience to have a supply of different types of media on hand to mix tailor made potting soils.  Its cheaper and its easy.

The main ingredients to most any potting soil is something to hold moisture in and commercially to be light so that handling and trucking weights are kept down.  Mixing sand in isnt normally done for most greenhouse grown plants.  At home it doesnt matter so much because you arent moving them around nationally by truck.  Since theres no compost, theres less chance of fungus, disease, or weeds.

The sawdust holds water and although it takes more carbon than other ingredients its cheap and light.  You will be starting the seeds and fertilizing them in a mixture of other ingredients as well.  The fine pine bark helps water retention and aerates the soil.  Peat moss has anti fungal properties,  and sand creates strong roots and aerates the mix.  Since it is a soilless media there is a greatly reduced risk of introducing pests and disease from dirt taken from elsewhere.  Its a win win for you and your plants.

The pine bark holds tiny little air pockets in the soil so that your plants roots get plenty of oxygen.  Pine generally doesnt break down very fast.  You dont want something that will pack down and turn to mush.  Like the sawdust, pine bark also holds water but drains well.

Peat is sometimes a touchy subject for some as it isnt always collected with the best ecological interest.   If you choose to use it in your mix it will produce a lighweight soil.  It will hold water well and will drain well.

As the last cheap ingredient we have sand.  Coarse sand is best.  You want the sand to make tiny little air pockets so your roots can enjoy some oxygen.  It prevents it from packing down and also holding too much water.

You keep hearing the word drainage.  Drainage is very important.  It is as important as the water holding capabilities of the pine bark, sawdust, and peat moss.  You want it to retain water for a long time but you dont want it to be soggy.  Drainage is very impiortant because holding water will kill your young plants and create breeding grounds for fungus and disease.

Vermiculite, perlite, and other similar ingredients are good but they are costly.  They are also sometimes hard to find and just not necessary for the home gardener.  We quit using it altogether.  There is supposedly no longer asbestos in the new mining areas and they test it.  In the past some have strayed away from those types of media from fear of asbestos.

Fertilize with a basic fertilizer after they start growing their leaves as there is no nutrients in the soil mix.  There’s really no need to have nutrient to start with as the seed is an embryo.  Mix an all purpose fertilizer of your liking and feed them with that a few times a week once they get growing.  There are certain types of fertilizers that will help compact growth so they dont get leggy and spindly.

Professional nurseries use a growth chemical mixture to purposely produce those compact little plant starts.  In Washington state you need an applicators license to buy it.  We use fertilizers to get the same result.  We will elaborate on that in a later article but its something to consider when wanting thos compact and lush plant starts come springtime.