The beauty of flower gardens, the magnificent
expanses of orchards and the cornucopia of our food
supply begins with a simple honey bee pollinating a
flower. Approximately 1/3 of our food supply depends
on the honey bee, but honey bee colonies are dying off
at an unprecedented rate. Scientists are not sure why
adult bees suddenly and permanently vanish from the
hive causing the bee colony to rapidly die off.
Scientists point to pesticides, shrinking habitats
and disappearing nectar sources resulting from
commercial and residential land developments as the
most likely causes.
Bee keepers in over 20 states have grown very
concerned and have mobilized the Federal
government and university scientists to help deal with
this crisis. Bee keepers are quickly switching to
organic pesticides, but we too can help. Using
pesticides and lawn sprays to get that perfect lawn
may end up resulting in you having no fruit for
breakfast. For example, dandelions are essential to
the honey bee's livelihood. If you find you must use
pesticides there are organic pesticides on the market
for your lawn and garden. They may not be the best or
the cheapest, but is the golf course lawn more
important than providing a well-balanced meal to your
family?
It is the simplest and tiniest of creatures that remind
us about the interconnectedness of all things, and that
technology although beneficial, also has detrimental
consequences that many times are not evident until
the damage is already done. Sometimes we may
need to forgo our aesthetic vanities to ensure our
more basic needs. By protecting the bee, you will be
caring for the health of your family. Now that is
something to truly brag to your neighbor about.