Farmers in Winter-musings on Pollinators

Its always been strange to me to think about going south for a winter vacation. Growing up, winter for me was about winter sports... skiing, sledding, ice skating, cross country skiing and snow shoeing... as well as hibernating, cocooning and meditating.

But this year we did go visiting in Florida...

Farmers in Florida

On a laneway very much like our own...except not frozen and dormant,

where the Calusa People used to thrive.

Egret

and now we do, as the climate is much more mild than New England.

From one Coast to Another

Swimmer

White Heron Fishing

See you Later Alligator!

To Coconut Grove!

 A place rich with growth

limestone

Beauty

interesting life

and light.

So here is where I come to pollinators,

in a butterfly house in Coconut Grove, Fla.

Knowing that upon returning to Boston I would go to Organic Bee School I became interested in other pollinators as well. Butterflies, like bees, have gone through a big decline this year. Being a little afraid of insects, I would have never thought keeping bees would be something I would do. My purpose for wanting to learn how to keep bees is that they are endangered. After watching More than Honey and contemplating the collapse of bee colonies possibly being from a combination of chemicals, mono-crops and human handling of Bees, I wanted to help bees be bees in nature, and then bees would be helping me if I am trying to grow food on a diversified farm. I want to be part of a process of healthy natural life. A little honey would be very nice too, of course.

 Bumbler

Bumble bees pollinate as well as Honey Bees. Bees are productive pollinators especially when they are gathering pollen. They do this when they are building brood. But wasps and many other insects birds bats and animals also pollinate. Some while eating, some incidentally, and some because of deception of the plant-which mimics either pheromones of a specific insect's mate or scent of their larva's food to attract it to mate or lay eggs. How clever and fascinating nature is, if sometimes cruel.

 Pumpkin Flower October 2013

If bees do pollinate about 1/3 of our food supply, life seems a lot less interesting without bees. Even if you don't like insects or honey, we currently are relying on bees. Humans are in fact capitalizing on their industrious nature, by not only harvesting their products-wax and honey-but trucking them all over the country to pollinate huge mono-crops like almonds, blueberries, strawberries, etc. Bees also pollinate cacao. No bees, no chocolate.

The chemicals we use on these mono-crops are harmful to the bees being brought to pollinate them, as well as butterflies and other life, including mine. Recent increase in the use of neonicotinioids-used as insecticide on crops-is linked to these losses in our pollinators. Without butterflies there would be less beauty, without bees life wouldn't be as sweet.