20 May 2019

World Bee Day - Do Your Bit 

The health of honeybees is taken as a prime indicator of the state of our natural world. 

To celebrate World Bee Day, the United Nations Postal Administration has issued 3 new bee stamps: 

You can find them all here:https://unstamps.org/

The writer, Alison Benjamin, in the Guardian newspaper summed up why we should care enough about bees to do something.  Save Our Bees Save Ourselves 

Our former President Tim Lovett attended a reception at the residence of the US Ambassador to London last week to mark World Bee Day, he said " It was a privilege to enjoy the elegant facilities and beautiful gardens of Winfield House. And encouraging to hear that the US Ambassador Woody Johnson was in no doubt about the importance of our honeybees and other pollinators. Defra Minister Lord Gardiner was also present and he agreed."

 

The BBKA (British Beekeepers Association) is renewing its plea that you find something to plant for pollinators - to make sure there is enough food for the bees! You may have heard on the radio this morning that urban honey is darker in colour than from rural areas and that may be due to bees favouring the high sugar content of the dregs of cola drinks in cans and bottles left around. We want to make sure there are enough flowers for all species of bees and pollinators. 

May is the perfect time to help with this. 

Photo by Iolo Penri

As bees fly out of the hive they need food and lots of it. It's estimated that a bee visits a hundred flowers before it returns to the hive. Young bees can only grow properly if they have an adequate amount of protein in their diets and their only source is from pollen in plants and flowers. 

Plants rich in pollen and nectar are crucial. Unfortunately, many town councils and developers would rather not plant or maintain the type of trees which bear fruit or large quantities of nectar or pollen because of the feared "slip hazard" they might create or the cost of pruning to make sure they continue to bear fruit. However, these are exactly the type of trees which help bees and wildlife to thrive. 

So where possible please plant or protect existing mature plants, especially trees. 

Our chairman Margaret Wilson says: "A small fruit tree like the crab apple has beautiful blossom at this time of year which is a joy for us to look at. Its flowers provide excellent nourishment for bees, and then in winter it has a crop of berries which can be life-savers for wild birds. Planting more of the right kind of tree could make a huge difference to all wildlife, not just honeybees. 

NOTES

World Bee Day 

The UN general assembly introduced World Bee Day after adopting a resolution proposed by Slovenia, where the Carniolan honeybee is native. 

World Bee Day is supported by all UN Member States and the International Federation of Beekeepers' Associations. Its aim is to raise public awareness about the importance of bees, highlighting how the beekeeping sector helps in such matters as poverty alleviation, preserving a healthy environment and in maintaining biodiversity. 

For further information or interviews please contact: 

Diane Roberts

Press Officer, British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) 

T: 07841625797

[email protected]

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