Tyrconnell Heritage Society: Trailblazer Tuesdays

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Trailblazer Tuesdays

🌿Trailblazer Tuesdays🌿

One out of every three bites of food that we eat is made possible by pollinators like honey bees. As the growers of most of our food, Canadian farmers know how much we all rely on these pollinators. Our farmers depend on healthy crops to make a living. We all depend on the ability of those farmers to feed Canadians, and people around the world who depend on Canadian food production.

Maybe you could stand to live in a world without honey. But what about almonds, pears, avocados, grapes and; dare we say; wine? Most plants rely on bees and other natural pollinators to produce some of nature's most nutritious and beloved foods. Many crops; like cucumbers, pumpkins, cherries and apples; depend on them for pollination. But pollinators, a diverse group that includes insects and animals such as birds and bats, are under threat because of widespread pesticide use, climate change, the emergence of foreign pests, diseases and habitat loss. Statistics Canada data shows the number of honey bee hives in Canada is on the rise. They still face a number of health issues, however, and one of their major challenges is finding and collecting food. A third of their life is spent flying to find flowers with pollen they can bring back to their hive. Every honey bee contributes by pollinating a diverse range of plants. It's hard to imagine that an animal as small and inconspicuous as a bee, could be our greatest ally in providing food, but approximately one third of everything we eat is a direct result of their hard work.

So what can you do to help bees? It can be as easy as planting herbs, wildflowers, bushes and fruit trees in your garden. For city dwellers, herbs are a great thing to have growing on your window sill. Rosemary, lavender, thyme, and chives are great options that require little space and provide produce for humans and bees. Also buying honey from local beekeepers instead of the industrial honey produced for most supermarkets. Artisan producers of raw, unblended local honey, are competing against mass-produced, commodity honey, which comes from many different places where food standards might fall far short of our own. Although it is cheaper, industrial honeys are processed to extract pollen, enzymes and aromatics, leaving a product that competes and demoralizes local beekeepers.

Most people mistake wasps and bees for the same insect, for one they are both capable of giving painful stings. While honey bees can attack when provoked, wasps are naturally and more aggressive predators. Identifying the difference between honey bees and wasps is important in order to administer proper treatment of wounds and appropriate pest control. Wasps and bees also differ in lifestyle and habits. Honey bee colonies can have populations over 75,000, while wasps’ colonies tend to have fewer than 10,000 individuals. Wasp species cannot produce honey, but all species of honey bees are capable of producing and storing sizeable amounts of honey within their hives. While honey bees can sting only once and die after attacking, a single wasp is capable of stinging multiple times.