Hardy Tropicals UK

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welcome to robobee:

http://io9.com/swarms-of-robotic-bees-c ... -453423657



not sure that these robotic bees will be very effective though

I guess its not only bees wich suffer from this. The sharp decline of the number of butterflies could also has to do with it! And the dissapairrance of wildflowermeadows could also be a reason bees get into difficulty. If they have only 1 foodsource that could not be that good.
Well the whole way intensive of farming is bassically lethal to most wildlive! Here in The Netherlands you will find more wildlive in urabanised areas then in the countryside.

Alexander

Farm land is nothing more than green industrial estates. Sooner people understand that the better, nothing natural about it.

I haven't seen a Honey Bee in 2 years now. Yet we are only 400m from the nearest Oil Seed Rape fields. Used to see literally hundreds of Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies, haven't seen ANY of those for maybe 15 years.

Rabbie wrote:Farm land is nothing more than green industrial estates. Sooner people understand that the better, nothing natural about it.

We get plenty of that here! I guess 25 percent of the countrysite here in The Netherlands is now green corn. They use that for feeding pigs. And then those famous Dutch tulips thanks to all the chemicl spreaying.

Alexander

Dave Brown wrote:I haven't seen a Honey Bee in 2 years now. Yet we are only 400m from the nearest Oil Seed Rape fields. Used to see literally hundreds of Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies, haven't seen ANY of those for maybe 15 years.

Dave,

Is it that bad overthere? I see less bees then in the past but still see them here. I have lots of Origanum vulgare flowering here, they love that plant. And the small totoiseshell butterfly I see now every day here. A couple of weeks ago I had 10 on my allotment garden. I have lots of Knautia arvensis growing there, its almost a weed. But a very good butterflyplant. And Scabiosa columbaria Well I have exotic plants but also a lot of native stuff. And I try to attract butterflies and other insects as well. Also lots of bumblebees. The Stachys betonicifolia is full of them at the moment.

Alexander

Alexander wrote: Dave,

Is it that bad overthere?
Alexander

Unfortunately yes.

Been on my New Years Resolution list to keep bees for several years now. I've had to put it down as a Fail each year I just don't have the time.

I think what I need to do is find a local bee keeper and buy the hives etc. for them to then look after for me, if they would be willing. I'd love to do a bit to help.

Could you keep Bees Dave - others too maybe?

Kristen wrote:Been on my New Years Resolution list to keep bees for several years now. I've had to put it down as a Fail each year I just don't have the time.

I think what I need to do is find a local bee keeper and buy the hives etc. for them to then look after for me, if they would be willing. I'd love to do a bit to help.

Could you keep Bees Dave - others too maybe?

We have lots of Bumble and Humble Bees Kristen. I think the population has increased as the Honey Bee declined. Sedum plants were smothered in flowers and Bumble Bees until last week.

There are certain plants I grow specifically because it provides a good chemical free food source for bees.

Rosemary, Honeysuckle, Hollyhocks (yeah, you heard me right), lavender, sprouting broccoli and a few others

They are also all evergreen varieties too

Well it seems the honeybee, Apis mellifera was originally not native to the British Isles. It seems to origenate is eastern Tropical Africa!
There where and still are many wild sollitary bee species.
The Romans seem to have introduced honeybees. And before the Europeans went to the New World there where no Apis in the Americas!

So not everything is lost when they will become rare.

Alexander

Alexander wrote:Well it seems the honeybee, Apis mellifera was originally not native to the British Isles. It seems to origenate is eastern Tropical Africa!

Nope, it is native in Europe too - the European and African populations are different subspecies (actually several subspecies in each continent). Northern Europe's native subspecies (Apis mellifera mellifera) is endemic in NW Europe (not found naturally anywhere else) and is distinct in being much darker than other subspecies.

Conifers wrote:

Alexander wrote:Well it seems the honeybee, Apis mellifera was originally not native to the British Isles. It seems to origenate is eastern Tropical Africa!

Nope, it is native in Europe too - the European and African populations are different subspecies (actually several subspecies in each continent). Northern Europe's native subspecies (Apis mellifera mellifera) is endemic in NW Europe (not found naturally anywhere else) and is distinct in being much darker than other subspecies.

Thanks to correct my error. Good to know we have a wild indigenous honey bee species here.
And now I remember that in Bialowieza people did collect honey from wild bees in de forest.

Alexander

Yesterday I saw some honey bees on the Origanum vulgare. I grow the wild species here. Its a kind of weed to be honest.

Alexander