Honeybees have a very crucial role in the sustainability of our agriculture, this underestimated role of honeybees came into limelight when drastic reduction of honeybees colonies was noted in many parts of the country. Before going any further we must delve into the role these bees play, why is it important to have honeybee colonies? Honey bees are the main pollinators in agriculture, without this transfer of pollen grains between the plants carried out via honeybees plants and crops wouldn’t be able to reproduce.
In the United States honey bees are the commercial pollinators and pollinate around 80% of the crops, it’s the nature’s way of carrying pollen from plants to plants and is necessary for the growth of crops and human survival. So now you know bees not just produce honey and beeswax, but play a crucial role in agriculture. Crops like cotton, apple, peach, blueberry, blackberry, strawberries, cucumber, pear, plum, okra and water melon all depend on the honey bees to produce crop yields.
Why bee populations have been in constant decline is because of the climate change, use of pesticides, loss of habitat among other factors, environmentalists recently struggled to give bumble bee the status of endangered specie in the United States. Recently activist Rob and Hilary from “girl next door honey” shared a video of how they’re playing their part in protecting the bees. Hilary is trying to save San Diego’s bee population by raising awareness and rescuing bees.
Hilary manages 90 colonies of bees, she rescues the bees and keep them in the bee-friendly backyard. Here’s what you can do to save bees; don’t exterminate bees, don’t use pesticide in your home plants and flowers, buy local honey. Learn more about why it is important to protect bees and spread awareness.