Bees: welcoming a beehive at home
Bees: welcoming a beehive at home
The bee is doing badly. The causes of this malaise and the massive disappearance of the colonies are various: lack of food due to the impoverishment of the biotope, pesticides, fungicides, diseases … However, we can act for the preservation of bees, for example, by welcoming a beehive in our garden.
The daily life of men, more and more distant from nature, modifies the main principles of the latter and leads to the disappearance ofcash animal and plant. Thebee, like so many others, is paying the price for human will to dominate nature.
It could have gone unnoticed. Many animal and plant species have disappeared from the face of the Earth and polar bears, great apes, etc. risk the same fate. The bee could have been part of this blacklist without anyone worrying about its destiny. However, the media, the politicians are talking about it. Why ?
Because the bee, a major player in pollination, has an economic value. Thanks to it, we can eat honey, polish our furniture, take care of ourselves: our modern society is rediscovering the virtues of forgotten apitherapy. And then, and above all, the role of pollinator of the bee allows us to savor cherries, prunes, apples, tomatoes, courgettes… every kind of fruits and vegetables who, without this hardworking little beast flying fleur in bloom, covering itself with pollen, would not arrive on our plates.
Honey is one of the oldest ways to sweeten foods. Its manufacture requires a lot of work from the bees. Unisciel and the University of Lille 1 explain to us, with the Kézako program, the stages of its making. © Unisciel
This is where the drama plays out: if the bee disappears, humans will have to manage to artificially pollinate the flowers of multiple plants, which will represent colossal work and a significant cost. Ultimately, future generations, and many species of fruit-eating animals, may experience serious feeding difficulties.
Act for the preservation of bees
At our smallest level, there is little we can do about the disappearance of polar bears and great apes. On the other hand, we can act for the preservation of bees by welcoming a few beehives in our gardens, by allowing them to find something to eat on our lawns or in our planters.
For those who cannot or do not want to welcome bees into their home but wish to act for their well-being, here are some tips:
- Plant honey plants; there are many but some are more visited than others: phacelia, lavender, sweet clover, heather and callune, ivy, borage, sunflower, columbine, white clover, alfalfa, sage, ail bears, fireweed, dandelion.
- Make sure your garden has honey plants in all seasons and do not mow dandelions, clovers, flowers that brighten up your lawn.
- A well-mowed lawn has no nutritional value for insects : space the clippings.
- Most importantly, no chemicals; it is bad for your health and for our friends the bees.
For the lucky ones who want to welcome bees and can, this file is for you. Good reading !
