World Bee Day is here and Bee Line wants to show some appreciation for the amazing bees who keep our ecosystem thriving.
It’s wild to imagine that tiny creatures like bees are big players in our ecosystem—they help us eat 90% of the foods we eat. We are so accustomed to seeing them around us that it’s almost unimaginable to think their population could be on a steep decline. To spread knowledge this World Bee Day, we took a moment to highlight how we can help wild bees thrive in our own neighborhoods.
We invited the amazing environmentalist, Leah Thomas (@greengirlleah), to join us in learning about five easy actions we can do to help save bees in our own communities. Leah Thomas is not just an environmentalist who preaches about wellness; her goal as a leading force in intersectional environmentalism, is to shed light on how people of color are heavily affected by global warming. She continuously does the work in encouraging others to join the movement in a way that allows anyone to participate, regardless of how much they know about climate change at the moment.
Bee Line, TheFutureParty and Leah spent a day at BeeFlow in California—a company helping the bees become stronger for pollination by helping them adjust to their current climate.
Check the video above to learn more about what we can do to save the bees and check out some resources below to help take those easy steps.
Plant a bee garden and go organic.
For small spaces and gardening beginners, try this mini garden growing kit from BackyardSafari, with flowers that are specifically beneficial for honey bees. Try this out on your apartment balcony or patio.
FROM THEIR WEBSITE: This patio gardening kit comes with everything you need to start your very own Honey Bee Habitat Garden! A colorful combination of annual & perennial wildflowers that provide nectar and pollen throughout the growing season. Includes a Bee Gardening Booklet & enough seeds to share with a friend!
Seed Envelopes are FCS Certified, 30% Post Consumer Waste, 100% Windpower
Egg Carton Garden Includes: Open Pollinated Wildflower Seeds, Starter Soil, Growing Instructions, Bee Gardening Booklet & 100% Recycled Fiber Egg Carton Planter!
Seeds: Basil, Blanketflower, California Poppy, Cape Forget-Me-Not, China Aster, Chinese Forget-Me-Not, Corn Poppy, Dwarf Sulfer Cosmos, Lacy Phacelia, Lance-Leaved Coreopsis, Lavender Hyssop, New England Aster, Prairie Coneflower, Purple Coneflower, Purple Prairie Clover, Rockcress, Scarlet Cinquefoil, Siberian Wallflower, Slender Mountain Mint, Sweet Migonette.
For midsize outdoor spaces, try planting a fruit or vegetable tree or larger bushes—a dually beneficial act that will nourish you and your backyard wild bees. Bees love native wildflowers, flowering herbs, berries and many flowering fruits and vegetables. Some honeybee favorites here in Massachusetts include – mints, basil, sage, thyme, borage, oregano, lavender, chives, buckwheat, berries, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cucumbers, tomato, winter squash, pumpkins, melons, watermelons, broccoli, crocus, snowdrops, jonquils, tulips, sunflowers, asters, dandelions, clovers, lilacs, wisteria, cosmos, black-eyed susans, gaillardia, cup plants, goldenrod, loosestrife, bachelor’s buttons, bee balm, sedum, peony and honeysuckle.
Just add water.
Get into creating mini shallow bee baths that you can make yourself with shallow bowls and objects like marbles or stones to prevent the bees from drowning.
Build a home for native bees.
Fun fact: with the exception of honeybees, most bees are solitary creatures. 70% of solitary bees live underground, while 30% live in holes inside of trees or hollow stems. Species like bumble bees build their nests in undisturbed land, and just like Leah said in the video, you can provide a safe haven by leaving an untouched plot of land for them in your garden.
Support your local bee organizations saving the bees.
Check out the directory on BeeCulture.com that allows you to enter your location and find local beekeepers and conservancies for you to tap into and help out.
In time, our efforts will increase with more initiatives that positively impact that declining bee population. Stay tuned for updates on Instagram at @bbcicecream.