Anyone using

hazardous pesticides, whether it involves homeowners or licensed landscape

technicians, can unknowingly destroy this beneficial insect. A little

knowledge and understanding regarding this dilemma may prevent the termination

of this good bug while still eliminating the bad ones.

Honeybee history and plant

biology

The honeybee,

sweet bee, or Apis mellifera was first introduced to North America from

European settlers in the 1620s. They were kept for their honey, combs,

and wax. While these products are still desirable today, the most valuable

contribution of their labor is the increased production of nearly every

flower, fruit, vegetable, nut, and grain that we enjoy, not only visually,

but for consumption as well.

Many of our

most beloved plantings are a result of basic plant biology with the male

and female parts coming together through cross-pollination. This automatically

occurs when the honeybee searches for food for her colony. During a plant

visit, a worker bee is exclusively searching for pollen and nectar. Pollen

will be fed to the larvae as a needed protein, while nectar is stored

as honey for the adult bees to consume.

Foraging bees

will visit up to 100 flowers of the same species during a single trip

and because of their hairy bodies, will easily collect pollen grains to

cross-pollinate the next similar plant. Ultimately, the survival of her

hive and our plant species is joined together interdependently. Essentially,

one cannot live without the other.

So, why is

pollination important to people? Modestly stated, pollinators provide

approximately one-third of all the food we consume. Now there is a reason

for concern and involvement. Our food supply is directly related to plants

and the busy bee. Hopefully, this three-way affiliation will persevere

so that we may all reap the beauty and benefits of the pollination process.

Honeybee society and anatomy

In order to

appreciate honeybees, it is helpful to understand how they live. They

are considered social insects meaning their entire existence is dependent

upon cooperatively working together. Their society has a hierarchy driven

through three individual types of bees - the queen, the male drone, and

the female worker.

The queen

is the true mother of the hive with her only duty being to perpetuate

the species through laying up to 2,000 new eggs daily. She has worker

attendants that surround her to make sure she is fed, groomed, massaged,

and protected. There is only one queen. She can live productively for

about 2-3 years.

The male drones

are large and unable to sting or collect honey. Their only purpose is

to serve the queen, if necessary, through mating. If mating occurs, they

die instantly. If mating does not occur, they are ejected from the hive

each fall season and consequently starve to death. New drones are reared

the following spring. There are approximately 1,000 drones each breeding

season.

The female

workers perform all the work in the hive. They are the ruling power

of the colony and regulate its economy. They ventilate, secrete wax, build

the comb, gather the pollen and nectar, cap the cells of honey, feed and

rear the brood, clean, attend to the queen, throw out the drones, guard,

protect, and scout. They are small in size, but are the hive powerhouses

numbering about 30,000 or more. They live about 5-6 weeks and literally

work themselves to death.

Each member

of this circle performs its job to the fullest to keep the hive strong.

There are no slackers or lazy inhabitants. When a queen is no longer productive,

she will be replaced - drones are kept around only during the mating season

­ workers begin their tasks as soon as they emerge from their cells.

Order and organization rules in their home. They are immaculate in house

cleaning duties and will take daily "cleansing" flights for

elimination.

It is not uncommon

to see workers crawling away from the hive as they are dying. This is

done to not burden their sisters with body removal. This amazing group

is so perfectly encapsulated and well run, it is hard to think of hurting

them with chemicals.

The honeybee

body is also another wonder. Nature has covered them with tiny hairs that

pick up pollen, automatically, and move it from plant to plant. Even though

the worker bee stuffs pollen into unique pollen pockets on each back leg

to transport to the hive to feed the babies, its "hairy" body

is pollinating plants for us to produce our food sources. Unfortunately,

these hairs will collect anything powder-like on a plant. Hence, powdered

pesticides are mortal.

Pesticide alert

Interestingly,

many of the "bad" bugs are found destroying the very same plants

that the "beneficial" bee is foraging on to feed her colony.

Spraying or powdering with pesticides on anything that moves is a senseless

routine. Approximately 99.5 percent of all bee kills occur when they pick

up insecticide residues while visiting blooming plants.

Too often a

worker bee will go about her business of feeding the hive and unknowingly

pick up poisons that we have applied. If she doesn't die immediately,

she will return to her hive to annihilate the whole colony. With a little

patience and guidance for control methods other than pesticides, hopefully,

we can protect not only our plants, but also the invaluable honeybee.

Pesticide alternatives

Try "hand-picking"

off unwanted intruders. Many destructive insects can be seen. Two obvious

examples are the tomato hornworm and the Japanese beetle. Remove them

manually and squash or drown them in soapy water.

Mix-up and

use "natural" homemade sprays. Many household ingredients that

kill germs do a great job on destroying unwanted bugs. Items like diluted

antimicrobial dish soap or mouthwash have proven effective.

Purchase less

potent insecticides. Two safer products to try are Insecticidal Soaps

or BT (Bacillus thuringiensis).

Try purchasing

and using biological control agents. These are parasitic and predatory

insects actively introduced into your yard to eat the enemy. This is simply

bugs eating bugs or survival of the fittest. Examples of helpful insects

are ladybugs, pirate bugs, praying mantis, and green lacewings. Gardening

supply stores and the Internet have suggestions and ordering information

depending on what is bugging your plants.

Don't plant

seeds that have been genetically altered with pesticides. As these plants

mature and germinate, bees naturally pollinate them and die.

If you must

use a pesticide, use it wisely .

Read all of

the instructions and warnings before use. Pesticides that will harm bees

will list this warning: " BEE CAUTION: MAY KILL HONEYBEES IN

SUBSTANTIAL NUMBERS. This product is highly toxic to bees exposed to direct

treatment or residues on blooming crops and weeds. Do not apply this product

or allow it to drift to blooming crops or weeds if bees are visiting the

treatment area." Believe it.

Never

apply sprays at dawn or during the day. ONLY spray in the evening.

Bees forage from sun-up to sundown and then return to the hive for the

night. Hopefully, the toxicity will lessen overnight.

Never, ever

use "powder" pesticides. Nature has cleverly covered a bee's

body with fine hairs for pollination. Powders will stick to these hairs

and not only kill the bee, but the entire colony when she returns home.

When shopping

for any pesticide, don't just look or ask for what will "kill"

the bad bugs. Also inquire if it is safe for bees. Don't mindlessly buy

the market favorite and in the process of using it destroy everything

visiting your plants including bees, butterflies and humming birds. Be

aware that the most common products available for purchase are also the

most lethal to pollinators (Sevin, Diazinon, and Malathion).

Honeybees are

a remarkable part of nature. They mind their own business, provide for

their family, work together perfectly, and give us increased food supplies

through pollination. They deserve our respect and protection from devastating

pesticides.

Additional

reading materials and research information can be found from The University

of Georgia College of Agriculture & Environmental Sciences, Athens.

The Web site is www.uga.edu/caes/insectlab/ or www.ent.uga.edu/bees/.

Another valuable

source of related information through a local group is The Tara Beekeepers

Association at www.gabeekeeping.com. This organization meets the third

Monday of every month at 7:30 p.m. at The Reynolds Nature Preserve in

Clayton County. Call 404-366-6404 for questions, answers, or help.

(Debi Cziok

is a hobbyist beekeeper, avid gardener, and Fayette County resident. Look

for more "bee" related articles in future Home and Garden sections.)

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