Do urban bees have enough to eat? Beekeepers in the U.K. are raising concerns that their city bees might not have enough bee-friendly flora to support the increase in urban hives. Although research suggests that city bees are generally more healthy and productive than their rural cousins, some British beekeepers are worried about over-saturation in urban areas (signs of over-saturation include slow colony growth, poor honey production and excessively defensive behavior). Read the full Guardian article HERE. In New York City, there is a great organization dedicated to examining local food sources for bees and other pollinators. Since 2007, the Great Pollinator Project has been collecting data and researching ways to improve urban bee habitats. Find out how to grow your own pollinator garden to support urban bees.

Do urban bees have enough to eat?

Beekeepers in the U.K. are raising concerns that their city bees might not have enough bee-friendly flora to support the increase in urban hives. Although research suggests that city bees are generally more healthy and productive than their rural cousins, some British beekeepers are worried about over-saturation in urban areas (signs of over-saturation include slow colony growth, poor honey production and excessively defensive behavior).

Read the full Guardian article HERE.

In New York City, there is a great organization dedicated to examining local food sources for bees and other pollinators. Since 2007, the Great Pollinator Project has been collecting data and researching ways to improve urban bee habitats.

Find out how to grow your own pollinator garden to support urban bees.

02.08.11
10
#The Great Pollinator Project #The Guardian #beekeeping #bees #london #new york city
Urban bees are healthier, happier …that’s because those agricultural pesticides and a life on the road are a real buzz kill “…city bees kept by hobbyists and smaller operators are healthier than bees used in commercial agriculture. You’re putting them on a semi and throwing a net over them…[they’re] on the road three or four days. It kind of stresses them out.”

Urban bees are healthier, happier …that’s because those agricultural pesticides and a life on the road are a real buzz kill

“…city bees kept by hobbyists and smaller operators are healthier than bees used in commercial agriculture. You’re putting them on a semi and throwing a net over them…[they’re] on the road three or four days. It kind of stresses them out.”

31.07.11
29
#urban bees #city bees #pesticides #commercial agriculture #beekeeping

Hive Heists

In Madera County, about 130 miles east of San Francisco, officials saw a rash of bee burglaries this year, as a shortage of able-bodied pollinators drove up the price. “They’d just go in there and they smoke the bees, sedate them and take them,” Sheriff John Anderson said. “And they wear protective gear just like the pros.”

Brian Long, a beekeeper based in Colorado, was one of those hit, losing more than 400 hives — valued at about $100,000 — in California in January. And while Mr. Long later recovered the hives, and most of the bees therein, he said the thieves were getting bolder. “This is way more than we’ve ever had to deal with,” he said.

Read the full NYTimes article here

22.07.11
4
#bee theives #bees #california #farming #new york times