Today is World Bee Day, which is not to be confused with National Honey Bee Day celebrated in August. Today is intended to be the day that we all realize the importance of bees and other pollinators in our world. We would be negatively impacted without them. If you will click here, you can read an interesting article outlining the vital role of bees.
We all can take an active role in maintaining the bee population. You may consider planting nectar-producing flowers to attract them. Did you know that it takes the nectar of two million flowers for bees to produce one pound of honey?
These pictures from my camera roll show bees in our backyard enjoying coneflowers and bee balm.
While bees are considered to be the most important of the pollinators, we know that birds, bats, beetles, wasps, moths and butterflies (as shown below in the zinnia patch) are all vital to our world. I read that globally, 90% of wild plants and 75% of crops are dependent on these animals and insects.
We refrain from using harsh chemical pesticides in our yard since they negatively impact pollinators. We have concerns about mosquito foggers and yard services because they are harmful to all insects...not only the pesky blood-suckers.
It is enjoyable to view pollinators in action and we found it so fascinating to watch this little bee working the flowers at MO Botanical Gardens a few summers ago!
Let's all buzz out and plant some flowers for our pollinator friends. Bee happy that we can do something to help them since they do so much for our world! Happy World Bee Day!