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Chronological Thread  
  • From: Don Bowen <donb AT cts.com>
  • To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: Bees
  • Date: Tue, 23 May 2000 14:02:22 -0700


At 01:26 PM 5/23/2000 , you wrote:
I was just wondering how many people kept bees. I've installed one hive & am planning a 2nd soon. We've had a 75% drop in the # of bees in our area in the last 3 years due to recently introduced foreign diseases that many farmers are concerned about pollination in general. Are other areas experiencing this decline in wild honey bee populations as well?

Many things are leading to the decline of bee populations. There are two mites that are doing much of the damage and many of the available miticides are no longer working as well as they were. There is some experimentation with mite resistant bees and alternate treatments using essential oils but I am no longer up on the latest. I lost all my bees and equipment in a brush fire and have not reestablished.

Some areas are experiencing colony loss as high as 80%. The mites weaken a colony so it cannot over winter or build strength during spring nector flows.

Other reasons for loss are heavy use of pesticides in urban areas and the unreasonable fear of the so called "killer bees", the Africanized Honey Bee. Beekeeping is a fascinating activity and can be a very good profit center.

Don Bowen donb AT cts.com
Valley Center, CA Senior Software Engineer
Internet development and software engineering

http://members.cts.com/crash/d/donb
http://www.oldengine.org/members/ihc14
http://www.oldengine.org/members/ferguson/



  • Bees, Dave Bennett, 05/23/2000
    • <Possible follow-up(s)>
    • Re: Bees, Leigh Hauter, 05/23/2000
    • Re: Bees, Don Bowen, 05/23/2000
    • Re: Bees, Cheri Shelnutt, 05/23/2000

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