Something to bee thoughtful about

[dianeduane]

We take them for granted. We shouldn't.

During my visit to Tapp’s apiary just outside Chapel Hill, I asked him, "I'm wondering, does fifteen billion dollars worth of food a year depend on a bunch of retired hobbyists?"

I fully expected him to tell me I was exaggerating. Tapp turned his head, looked me in the eye and with a straight face said, "Well, yeah."

 

Comments

[dewline.livejournal.com]

There's a fair bit of ongoing concern about apiaries here in Ontario for various reasons, many of them ecological in nature. This would be the first I'd seen mention of the ages of the participants, though.

[megabitch.livejournal.com]

*nod* If it weren't for the beekeepers in the UK, the honeybee would have been wiped out in the 80s. We have one hive now - we had three but lost one last year and merged the remaining into a stronger hive. Last year was a fairly bad year for the local apiaries as well, I don't know one local keeper who didn't lose at least one hive. We'll probably get more hives this year. More honey (which two local shops sell for us), more wax (one local shop sells our beeswax furniture polish as well). Reminds me, I really need to do some candles.

[cee-m.livejournal.com]

Wow. Isn't it amazing how much our world depends on just a few people.

[jaxomsride.livejournal.com]

Why am I thinking "Sherlock Holmes"?

[siliconshaman.livejournal.com]

At this rate the country in world with a healthy bee population is going to be New Zealand.. and they are working really hard to keep it that way!

[gfish.livejournal.com]

Huh. I've been very interested in the way we're blurring the distinction between professional and hobbyist. (Mostly out of self interest, since there isn't currently a career path for professional dilettantes.) This has primarily because of computers and networking: open source development, bloggers as reporters, etc. Maybe I'll have to start thinking of beekeepers as an auxilliary force.

Further on the honeybee situation...

[dewline.livejournal.com]

...courtesy of CBC News. (http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2007/02/12/bee-deaths.html)

Now I'm just a tad more nervous.