tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post7925182677294520638..comments2023-12-18T05:43:37.923-08:00Comments on Brigit Strawbridge : Beesbrigithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-56819902782878324002011-04-01T11:54:28.465-07:002011-04-01T11:54:28.465-07:00have shared :)have shared :)brigithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-89982277901959652382011-04-01T02:17:50.199-07:002011-04-01T02:17:50.199-07:00Please do post it on your facebook page: ideas are...Please do post it on your facebook page: ideas are for sharing!Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-77716716357577929502011-03-31T11:45:22.198-07:002011-03-31T11:45:22.198-07:00Very encouraging to read T & M's reply Ada...Very encouraging to read T & M's reply Adam. Thank you for asking them the question and for the link.<br /><br />Love your tip about letting last year's brassicas go to seed ....will post that idea on my facebook page if you don't mind me pinching it!brigithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-44633713519358648372011-03-30T00:37:56.980-07:002011-03-30T00:37:56.980-07:00Oh, and while we're thinking about bees, here&...Oh, and while we're thinking about bees, here's another little bee-related tip I'd like to share:<br /><br />About this time of year, last year's brassicas (cabbages, broccoli, swedes, etc) start bolting and flowering, if there's any still left in the ground. There is a temptation to dig them up to make way for new crops, as they're past eating at this stage. However, if you can manage to leave them in the ground until after they've finished flowering, they seem to be a tasty treat for bees. I was about to dig mine up this time last year when I saw how many bees were feasting on the flowers, so I left them in the ground instead, and will try to do so every year.Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-21491581211753811042011-03-30T00:35:59.536-07:002011-03-30T00:35:59.536-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-54684882614713574922011-03-29T01:55:23.520-07:002011-03-29T01:55:23.520-07:00T&M have given quite a reassuring reply, which...T&M have given quite a reassuring reply, which you can read in full if you follow the link in my last post.<br /><br />However, the gist was that they don't usually treat their seeds with pesticides, and on the rare occasions that they do, they make sure they're clearly labelled as such.Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-54892424125681141722011-03-28T11:56:50.330-07:002011-03-28T11:56:50.330-07:00I'll be really interested to read Thompson &am...I'll be really interested to read Thompson & Morgan's reply Adam...and thanks for the link to the peer reviewed paper which I'll have a look at now.<br /><br />Thanks for honeybee info Karin! Hope you have a lovely week too xbrigithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-80894367158880991862011-03-27T13:38:45.001-07:002011-03-27T13:38:45.001-07:00Hi Bee,
Please don't forget pests and diseases...Hi Bee,<br />Please don't forget pests and diseases of bees. After starvation, the Varroa mite (together with the associated viruses, such as Deformed Wing Virus)is one of the biggest killers of honey bees. Other bees suffer serious problems, including death, from bloodsucking mites too. I recently fished out a queen bumble from our new pond, and noticed she was covered in tiny mites, and as she dried out the mites were crawling all over her throax. Wasps also kill a huge number of honey bee colonies in autumn and now we are threatened with an invasion of the Asiatic Hornet, 3 of these killers,can wipe out a colony in a matter of a couple of hours.<br />Have a good week. <br />Karin XKarin Altonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08018385377300837810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-74117221134253357642011-03-27T07:21:43.813-07:002011-03-27T07:21:43.813-07:00OK, I lied, I didn't email them, but I have po...OK, I lied, I didn't email them, but I have posted the question on their Facebook page:<br /><br />http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10150466150965727&id=705050897Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-12664580254899568632011-03-27T07:12:23.047-07:002011-03-27T07:12:23.047-07:00Thanks for those links Brigit. It's hard to kn...Thanks for those links Brigit. It's hard to know what to make of some of them, as the people providing the information may also be selling organic seeds, so we can't assume they are unbiased.<br /><br />However, one of your links led me to a peer reviewed paper (http://sverigesradio.se/diverse/appdata/isidor/files/83/7239.pdf) that certainly makes a good case for avoiding neonicotinoid-coated seeds. That paper was for corn seeds, and it's not clear that it would apply to other plants as well, but it's now enough to get me worried.<br /><br />Anyway, thanks for raising this issue. It's not something I've really thought about before, and now I feel that I should think about it. I think I'll email Thompson & Morgan (where I get most of my seeds from) and ask them what they use for coating their non-organic seeds.<br /><br />On the plus side, I saw bumblebees in my garden yesterday feeding on a pulmonaria plant!<br /><br />If you do find any more data on this, I'd be interested to see it.Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-70006722074809295292011-03-26T13:19:18.161-07:002011-03-26T13:19:18.161-07:00Hi Adam,
The problem with buying 'non-organic...Hi Adam,<br /><br />The problem with buying 'non-organic' is that it can be a bit of a lottery. Unless you buy certified organic (or get seeds from a reliable source where you know pesticides haven't been used on the parent plant) you could end up with genetically modified seeds or seeds coated in neonicotinoids or other herbicides/pesticides. Any plants you grow from contaminated seeds could cause damage to bees.<br />Seeds are often sprayed with more chemicals than the crops they originally came from!<br /><br />I'm struggling to find my original sources but here are a couple of links with useful information on why to start the organic process with seeds...<br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPnVkvCsHOA&feature=player_embedded<br /><br />http://www.buzzle.com/articles/why-use-organic-seeds.html<br />http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=8436<br />http://ezinearticles.com/?Reasons-Why-You-Should-Use-Organic-Vegetable-Seeds&id=2184286<br /><br />Hope these helpbrigithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-8247718712111928412011-03-25T10:12:28.773-07:002011-03-25T10:12:28.773-07:00Did you find any more information? My impression a...Did you find any more information? My impression at the moment is that organic seeds are just a nice way for seed companies to stick an extra couple of quid on the price, but happy to be proved wrong if you can provide some reliable data.Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-55966203740979975512011-03-24T03:16:54.747-07:002011-03-24T03:16:54.747-07:00Hi Adam,
It's mainly so you can avoid plantin...Hi Adam,<br /><br />It's mainly so you can avoid planting anything coated with any of the neonicotinoid insecticides I mentioned in the post. They are being used now in some domestic seeds and it's quite difficult to spot them as they come under different names.<br /><br />I'm dashing out now but will see if I can dig out some more information about this when I get back this afternoon...<br /><br />B xbrigithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-13538235280308538552011-03-24T02:27:38.756-07:002011-03-24T02:27:38.756-07:00Thanks for the tips, will certainly be doing my be...Thanks for the tips, will certainly be doing my best to plant some bee-friendly flowers this year.<br /><br />A question, however: you say "it's important to choose organic plants and seeds wherever possible". Now, I'm sure it's true that gardening organically, particularly avoiding the use of any pesticides, is going to be good for the bees, and I do indeed garden organically. But choosing organic seeds? Does that matter? Surely what matters is what I do with them after I've planted them, isn't it?<br /><br />Or am I missing something?Adam Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12257796809108710423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-92204281504272146562011-03-23T16:01:35.626-07:002011-03-23T16:01:35.626-07:00Great poem Jonathan.....says it all. Thank you for...Great poem Jonathan.....says it all. Thank you for posting xbrigithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07359515063025817090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6935755860899789954.post-43522550381548359632011-03-23T15:52:20.179-07:002011-03-23T15:52:20.179-07:00The Last Buzzer
Down amongst the dandelions, look...The Last Buzzer<br /><br />Down amongst the dandelions, looking for a nectar fix,<br />Buzzer contemplates a future, less one species in the mix.<br />Worried 'bout the state of flowers, pollen with a bitter taste,<br />Buzzer wonders why this garden's other buzzers left in haste.<br />Needs to find a country hedgerow, flower rich and meadow sweet,<br />Buzzer searches hard for clover, grasslands with that extra treat.<br />But it's hard to prosper when your habitat is awful rare,<br />Buzzer now begins to wonder if there's anyone to care.<br />Time for us to sort the problem, numbers need to multiply,<br />Buzzer's such a lovely fellow, shame to wave the chap goodbye!<br /><br />© Jonathan Humble 2011JHumblehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12499886117214356637noreply@blogger.com