National Honeybee Awareness Day is on August 15th this year, which means it’s time to remind everyone of those cute little pollinators that are so important to our ecosystem! If you have been wondering how you can play a part in saving the bees this year, and every year, here are some helpful tips to get you started.
Feed the Bees
To get more honeybees doing what they are supposed to in your hometown, you can provide them with lots of good, safe food and water! Make sure to support those who are making an effort to be safe and mindful of the bees.
Bee Gardens
The great thing about bee gardens is that you can plant them wherever you are: apartment balcony, community garden, or your backyard garden — plant pollen-producing flowers like pansies, peonies, or lavender. The more local plants you use, the better, as bees in your area thrive more off the plants they are already used to in your area. Use organic soil and avoid using harmful chemicals and pesticides; these will kill the bees!
If you have a larger yard to plant on, you can also plant flowering trees. Tree blossoms provide a vast food source for the bees and are especially useful if you have a large population around your home.
Drinking Fountains
Bees need a safe place to stop and get a drink of water, too. There are all kinds of cute bee drinking fountain ideas out there, and they are effortless to make. You can fill a dish with water, then toss in stones, sticks, cork, or anything that would be safe for bees to land on to get a sip. Without something to land on, bees will probably drown in the water.
Buy Local and Organic
Supporting your local organic farmers and buying from the farmer’s market in your area is an excellent way to promote farms that do not use harmful pesticides. The most widely used pesticides also kill bees, which is a significant problem for food production. Any little bit of encouragement to stop the use of those nasty pesticides helps!
Give Them a Home
How do you get thriving bee colonies to stay? Well, you build nice homes and nice places to stay, of course! Depending on the bee species you have in your area, you can use several different strategies to help the bees set up camp.
Build a Bee Hotel
One of the biggest reasons bee populations are dwindling is the loss of habitats. We can combat this by providing bee hotels along with our gardens to encourage solitary species to stay. These can be simple to make, like a coffee can filled with small tubes or anything that has a lot of nooks and crannies to nest in. You can find plenty of ideas to make a more complicated piece to match your garden or just some basic hotels made from items you may have lying around.
Allot Some Land
If you are someone with a large backyard or plentiful acres of land, then one of the best things you can do for the bees is allotting a section of an undisturbed area for them to use. Many bees make their homes on untouched land. This is an excellent option if you have the space to do it. You can place the hotels you made in this space, so they stay around for a while.
Support Your Local Beekeepers
Buying from your local beekeepers can help in multiple ways. When you buy directly from the source, you can ensure that these bee farms are using ethical practices to care for their bees. On top of that, buying from local farmers ensures that the profits go directly to their farm rather than through big-name grocery stores.
Local Honey
Local honey is a great buy and should be purchased from the beekeepers directly. Honey from an everyday grocery store is usually processed, contains extra additives, and often does not provide much profit to the bee farms that made it. Fresh, local honey is not only beneficial to the economy but also your health. Local honey is thought to help combat seasonal allergies since the bees that make it has processed the pollen for you.
Beeswax Products
In addition to honey, some bee farms make all kinds of great beeswax products. These can include soaps, candles, skincare, and more. Using these products help make sure that ethical bee farms can stay open, keep saving the bees, and providing you with organic beeswax products.
Be Active, Tell Your Friends
Once you have tried all these options and maybe even mastered them, go out and tell everyone you know why Honeybee Awareness Day is so important!
Post Your Support
Social media is probably the best and most versatile way to broadcast your support for a cause. Use your platforms to share information with your followers and follow organizations that are making an effort to save the bees. You can use social media to keep yourself and others up to date on events and opportunities to help your bee community.
Raise Some Funds
If you feel so inclined, you can also start your fundraiser to donate to organizations that help this cause. Facebook, for example, makes this super easy. You can post a fundraiser for a specific organization with a goal amount on your page, and your friends can contribute any amount they like. If the opportunity arises, do not hesitate to throw a fundraiser party, too. Invite your friends to the lovely bee garden that you have created and help fund the saving of the bees.