Bee-yond Beekeeping

Eight things you can do to help bees (without getting stung)

This article also appears in the Oct 2017 issue of Hyperlink, a new magazine focused on the intersection of media, technology, commerce, and culture. Hyperlink is published by Winning Edits. To purchase the Oct 2017 issue, go to hyperlinkmag.com.

By Mindy Holahan Peters

As a modern tech worker, I work out of my home — a small 1920s house on the east side of Saint Paul, the capital city of Minnesota. It’s easy to go stir-crazy working from home, and so most afternoons I find myself on a post-conference call walk through my neighborhood.

The East Side is politically active, and so I measure my walks in yard signs. My neighbors are full of opinions about the looming mayoral election, supporting Black Lives Matter, and campaigning for preservation of the neighborhood’s crumbling old houses. The signs give me a glimpse into what’s important to the people around me.

In many of the yards, there’s another, smaller sign: “Bee Safe Yard.” It seems like such an unusual thing to advertise — why wouldn’t a yard be safe for bees? Of all the problems affecting the world, do bees really merit a movement?

As it turns out, yes. For the last decade, bees have been in trouble, and ten years later, we’re still trying to determine why. Here’s the story behind why the bees are struggling, and what (beyond a yard sign) you can do to help.

A Brief History of the Problem

The plight of bees first made news in 2007, as commercial beekeepers began to report massive die-off of their broods. Headlines like National Geographic’s “Mystery Bee Disappearances Sweeping US” began to pop up in February 2007, and as the year progressed, the headlines became increasingly sensational. “New virus may be killing bees” (Reuters), “You’re going to miss bees” (Sacramento News & Review), and my personal favorite, “Are Cell Phones Wiping Out Bees?” (New Scientist). “[It used to be that] the loss rate over the winter for bees might be as high as 5 percent,” says Fred Stewart, owner of Sacramento Beekeeping Supplies. “Now the loss rate can be anywhere from 50 percent to 75 percent.”

The die-off has a name, colony collapse disorder, which occurs when bees abandon their hive and their queen, the one bee responsible for laying eggs. Reports of colony collapse disorder weren’t limited to North America; beekeepers across Europe were also experiencing significant bee losses. Bees have remained in the headlines over the last seven years, as beekeepers, conservationists, and researchers attempt to determine the reason for the widespread deaths.

A variety of causes have been suggested, ranging from parasites, including a particularly destructive mite; viruses and fungal infections; neonicotinoid pesticides; and the impact of global climate change. (Big surprise: it wasn’t cellphones.) Although you may not realize it, bees are a critical link in our food chain. Here’s why bees matter — and as a bonus, I’ll share simple steps you can take to make sure your local environment will help bees thrive long into the future.

Let’s Talk about (Plant) Sex

Whether you love bees or run screaming at the sight of them, they are a critical contributor to our daily lives, and for their tiny size, they have an immense impact on our economy. A 2009 fact sheet from the Obama administration White House placed their value to the United States economy “at more than 9 billion dollars.” Why? Because three quarters of our food crops require pollination.

Without bees, there’s no such thing as avocado toast. Give that a moment to sink in. The staples of the modern tech worker’s diet — coffee, almonds, avocados, and even tequila — rely on animal pollination. The Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies sites California’s almond orchards as requiring an average of 1.6 million domesticated bee colonies for pollination each year. “Without the pollination, our food supply disappears in about three years,” says Stewart.

To understand pollination (and why bees matter), think back to your high school ecology class. That’s right, we’re going to discuss plant sex! Plant reproduction comes in a few different varieties; for this discussion we’re focused on sexual reproduction of flowering plants.

Like humans, flowering plants keep their reproductive organs in two separate places: the male organs (the anther) produce pollen, which needs to reach the female organs (the stigma and the ovule). Plants need help move this pollen, and that movement (called pollination) can happen by wind, water, birds, or insects — like bees and butterflies. As bees travel among flowers collecting plant nectar, pollen clings to their bodies and is distributed from one plant to another, thus fertilizing the female organs of the plant.

The result of that fertilization? The fruits and nuts that so many of our healthy diets rely on. No pollination means no fruits, nuts, berries, and even no potatoes.

We’re All Doomed, Right?

Now that you understand the bee’s role in agriculture, let’s return to the speculative causes of colony collapse disorder. As of late, much focus has been placed on pesticides, particularly the family of pesticides called neonicotinoids. According to the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, neonicotinoids are widely used on the majority of US crops, from corn and soybeans to “the vast majority of fruit and vegetable crops.”

Neonicotinoids gained such widespread adoption in part because they were supposed to be safer — birds and mammals are less affected by this pesticide than the previously preferred pesticide families. And while farmers have application practices designed to minimize negative effects, there is a growing concern surrounding over what the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, a leading organization dedicated to pollinator conservation, calls “sublethal doses.” Neonicotinoids are prized, in part, for their ability to remain on crops, which means that bees may experience prolonged exposure to doses that aren’t high enough to kill them, but may “impede bees’ ability to forage, find their way home, combat disease, avoid predators, and reproduce.”

Without bees, there’s no such thing as avocado toast. Give that a moment to sink in.

“Farmers are coating seeds in order to keep the seeds from being destroyed before they germinate,” says Stewart. “The result is that the plant grows and then this pesticide that has coated the seed goes up through the root system and comes out in the blossom . . . Bees visit it, get that chemical, take it back to the hive, and feed the new bees that are developing, thus causing the brood not to be viable, and it dies.”

When the plight of bees first started making news, many concerned homeowners rushed out to the nearest big box garden center to buy bee-friendly plants for their yards — and unwittingly bought plants treated with neonicotinoids. The headlines changed again, this time to “How Your Bee-Friendly Garden May Actually Be Killing Bees.”

In 2013, fifteen members of the European Union enacted a temporary ban on the use of neonicotinoids. Despite attempts from conservation groups, the United States has yet to follow suit. Some growers’ associations are taking matters into their own hands. The Almond Board of California developed a set of Honey Bee Best Management Practices, focused on the reduced use of pesticides and careful application during the pollination season.

So are neonicotinoids our smoking gun? No, although they appear to be a heavily contributing factor. In June, the journal Science published a widespread study of the effects of neonicotinoids on bees at thirty-three sites in Europe. At many of the sites, both honeybees and wild bees appeared to suffer deleterious effects from the pesticide; but in Germany, the bees thrived. The study paints a complicated picture for the perils of life as a honeybee. To hear more on this study from National Public Radio go to npr.org and search “pesticides harming bees.”

Where does this leave us? Frustrated. Seven years later, we still don’t have the smoking gun, a definitive cause we can point to and say, “That’s it! Stop doing that and everything will be fine.” It can be tempting to throw up our hands and walk away, but there are actionable steps you can take to help bees thrive in your local environment.

In Your Backyard

The most direct way to support your local bees begins in your own backyard. The plants that you choose to plant in your garden — whether you’ve got a large suburban cul-de-sac, a tiny city lot, or just a little apartment balcony — matter.

1. Keep it local. When planning your garden, choose plant species native to your area. Many of the plants commonly grown in our gardens are not originally from our local environment. The National Resources Defense Council sums it up nicely: “Local plants match the needs of nearby pollinators. Those modern hybrids you find at plant nurseries, on the other hand, may have pollen, nectar, and even scent bred out of them.” To find out which plants are native in your area, consult your local university extension service or simply run an internet search for “[your city] native landscaping plants.” The Xerces Society has also compiled pollinator-friendly native plant lists for each region of the United States: https://xerces.org/pollinator-conservation/plant-lists/.

2. Look for neonicotinoid-free plants. With the growing awareness surrounding neonicotinoids, you’ll find many plants in large garden centers now sport a “neonicotinoid free” sticker.

Even better: when you can, shop instead at local garden centers and farmers’ markets, rather than the garden section of big box retailers. The employees at your local garden center are likely to be better educated in the source of their plant stock, and will know which were treated with pesticides prior to arriving at their store.

3. If you come across a swarm of honeybees, don’t kill them. When a group of bees is looking to form a new hive, the swarm will often gather on a tree or the side of a building. Don’t be frightened, and don’t break out the wasp killer. “Call an organization that can give you a beekeeper’s name. He will go out and collect the bees and take them to where these bees can survive,” says Stewart. (Search for “[your city] beekeeping association.”)

4. Be okay with an imperfect garden. Insects and weeds happen. If you apply chemicals in the hope of killing every last leaf-cutter insect or patch of dandelion, you may be harming beneficial pollinators. Remember that gardens are a natural habitat; if you have a plant that gets hit particularly hard by insect damage, try choosing a different plant next year.

If the time comes that you do need to use a pesticide, don’t apply it while your plants are in bloom. This is when bees and butterflies are most likely to be active in your garden. Follow the label closely and never apply more than recommended. Pesticides that can kill bees will have a “Protection of Pollinators” section on the label indicating how to use the pesticide in the most bee-friendly manner.

At the Grocery Store

In a perfect world, I would tell you to buy all of your produce at a farmers’ market from your local organic farmers, but that advice isn’t always practical. There are some small choices you can make that will help support your local beekeepers.

5. Buy local honey. This is easier than you might think — even the grocery section of my neighboring Target carries honey from a local farm. Grocery stores often include a local brand alongside national brands; check the address on the label. The extra dollar or two is well worth it; if the cheap brand is labeled “honey blend,” then it has been mixed with corn syrup or other sweeteners.

6. Check out your local co-op. Food co-ops are grocery stores that are owned by their members. These days most co-ops are competitively priced and well stocked. The benefit to bees: most co-ops work closely with local farmers, favoring farms with sustainable practices and careful land management. Talk to co-op staff to learn more about their partner farms.

In Your Community

It’s through community organizations that you can truly begin to multiply the impact of your time, money, and energy.

7. Support organizations that eradicate invasive species and restore native plant habitats. An invasive species is a non-native plant that outcompetes the native wildlife and takes over a landscape. This leads to a lack of plant diversity, and a lack of native food sources for pollinators.
Organizations like Great River Greening in the Twin Cities remove invasive species and restore native plants to riverbanks and parks. To find a similar organization in your area, search for “native plant restoration nonprofit [your city].”

8. Support urban beekeeping. With the rise of the local food movement, you may have noticed an increase in urban backyard farming. While many cities have embraced laws allowing homeowners to keep small chicken coops, far fewer allow for backyard beekeeping. Ordinances often vary wildly within a metropolitan area; for example, while both the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul allow any properly trained homeowner to obtain a beekeeping permit, many of their surrounding suburbs prohibit backyard beekeeping.

How can you help? First, check the rules for your city (search for “beekeeping ordinance [your city]”). If your city council holds hearings on a beekeeping ordinance, send in a letter or email in support of beekeeping (or better yet, attend the council meeting and voice your opinion in person). Your voice can make a big difference in educating local lawmakers.

Beekeeping permits often require proof of beekeeper education, a hive setback from the property line, and neighbor notification. If you receive notification from a neighbor but are uncomfortable with the idea of living close to a beehive, talk to the neighbor before objecting to the permit. Your neighbor may be able to alleviate your fears, and you may get some local honey in exchange! “The bees generally don’t hang around your yard for very long,” says Stewart. “You can orient the beehive so that there’s a space directly opposite to give the bees room that they can fly out, and then up and out. You can put barriers up to discourage the kids from going on the other side of that screen.”

While these are my favorite ways to support pollinators, I’m sure you know of more! Share them with our team at on Twitter @WinningEdits.

Sidebar: What about butterflies?

Butterflies are another important pollinator whose habitat is under intense threat. Xerces Society estimates that the population of the monarch butterfly has decreased by over 70 percent since the 1990s. They have attributed this population loss to four major factors: loss of milkweed, pesticides, climate change, and the loss of forests due to logging.

To help butterflies, plant milkweed in your garden. Milkweed is the monarch’s preferred breeding habitat, but current large-scale farming practices no longer allow milkweed to thrive at the edge of farmland. Learn more about gardening for monarchs at https://xerces.org/monarchs/. Learn more about milkweed at http://www.nwf.org/Garden-For-Wildlife/About/Native-Plants/Milkweed.aspx.

Sidebar: Bee Apps

• iPhone and iPad users, report your bee sightings with citizen science project Bumble Bee Watch. Upload photos and use the bee identification key to tag the species. Your reports will help scientists track bee population trends. Search the iTunes app store or go to bumblebeewatch.org.
• Enter your ZIP code into Bee Smart Pollinator Gardener from Pollinator.org, and you’ll find a list of pollinator-friendly plants perfect for your area. Listing include helpful plant information, including sun requirements, blooming times, and moisture needs. Available for both Android and iPhone.

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