bees - scenes from Meadowlake Farm
Where have all the bees gone? Have you heard about the honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder that is affecting bees all around our world. I'm not a beekeeper, just an average person who enjoys being outside and raising a vegetable garden, and I’m frightened. There are hardly any be bees to be found in my garden anymore. I remember when I was a child and running from the bees, and screaming over the spiders and praying mantis and frogs in the yard, even the inch worms and caterpillars -- but they're gone.
I'm guilty of spraying my vegetables and my trees, not thinking at all about the long-term consequences of killing the 'bugs'. Our town and state sprays for mosquitoes at night so people don't die the West Nile virus or whatever else is on their agenda - and guess what, we're bug free! But we're killing ourselves by destroying our food supply.
BEES = FOOD Somewhere along the chain of our education, common sense, nature and chemistry have been sold out - to the large corporations and their profits, to processed foods, political alliances and our own laziness and lack of personal responsibility. IF WE KNEW WHERE OUR FOOD CAME FROM WE'D UNDERSTAND HOW IMPORTANT BEES ARE TO OUR SURVIVAL.
If you'd like to learn about the bees' role in our lives, Meadowlake Farms' website is the place to begin. You will find wonderful articles, products, honesty and directness - and a newfound love and respect for the humble honeybee.
"At Meadowlake Farm we are committed to helping the honeybee. We do not use chemicals, pesticides or antibiotics to manage the problems bees are facing. Last year 60-70% of commercial hives perished. 90% of wild colonies are gone due to their weakened state. If this continues, they will cease to exist by the year 2035. Without them fruits and vegetables with seeds will disappear.
In some areas of China where villagers depend on fruit crops for economic survival, crops are pollinated by hand. Yields are small and unreliable. This is not a viable solution. The honeybee is gone there. Killed by pesticides.
Our unsound environmental choices have brought bees to the point that they can't survive. We are all responsible for this tragedy. As consumers, our desire for 'perfect' fruits and vegetables year round as well as the perfect lawn and garden has contributed immensely. While science searches for a solution, it is becoming clear that these factors all play a role:
- Pesticide, antibiotic, herbicide and environmental chemical use
- Stress due to profit driven management practices
- Loss of plant diversity due to today's farming practices
- The desire to eradicate 'weeds' and native species from urban areas
- Unrestricted development
- The factory farm
- Loss of sustainable farming methods
It is extremely challenging to keep bees today. It is more challenging to work for change in a world that does not recognize the absolute need for it.The solution to us is simple. It is in the hands of consumers. Without it, change will not occur. Buy local and buy organic. Understand that blemishes and imperfections in your organic produce are natural and acceptable and represent nature's 'stamp' of pesticide free, nutritionally superior foods. Understand that your perception of a beautiful lawn and garden is just that...your perception. An eco-lawn dotted with wildflowers and native plants is nature's design. A garden which allows for wild species is too. Think it can't be beautiful? Then you haven't spent a summer afternoon in a place like Meadowlake Farm."
websites to learn about bees, bee farming and bee products
bee suppliers and supplies
worms
Copyright by Jim Jensen, YELM Earthworm & Castings Farm, 1998, yelmworms@aol.com. Permission granted to copy or post with complete attribution in whole, without addition, deletion, or substitution.
"Ancient cultures revered worms for the valuable role they play in the formation of rich agricultural soil. Charles Darwin observed the activity of worms and credited them with the fertility of farms the world over. For decades, worm farmers and anglers have practiced vermiculture in the pursuit of profit and recreation. Recently, however, homeowners and recycling managers have taken note of the potential of worms to help manage our "wastes."
Feeding redworms is a good way to make high-quality compost from vegetable and fruit scraps. Unlike garden earthworms or nightcrawlers, redworms (known scientifically as Eisenia fetida, or commonly as manure, striped, or brandling worms) thrive on high-organic wastes.The use of redworms for home composting has been developing for many years and has been popularized during the past decade. Home-scale worm composting is widespread in the U.S. and Canada, and is supported by many recycling agencies and the health department. "
Click Here to learn all about home earthworm composting.
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