In principle, we know well all the importance of the honey bee. But the numbers are still always impressive:
- 80% of our total domestic flowering plants are pollinated by honey bees.
- Without the contribution of bees yield fruit cultivation z. B. would fall by 75%. Bees pollinate containing stone and pome fruit trees, berry bushes, canola, peas, beans, clover, alfalfa, cabbage, carrots and all kinds of flowering plants.
- Therefore, the value of the bees are not measured by their honey production, but to their pollination and thus its contribution to the conservation of biodiversity.
- In order to collect the nectar for 1 pound of honey, the honey bees lay back a distance equal to three times the earth's circumference.
- German bees (z. Zt. Recognizable by the black-red-gold probe pads) cover with their work about 20-25% of the German honey requirement.
- Every German eats an average of 1.3 kg of honey a year
About 80,000 beekeepers, there are still in Germany, but they have, and that is worrying, with an average age of 65 years. There is a lack of young beekeepers and -Innen.
In 1952 alone there were in West Germany still 182,000 beekeepers with 2.1 million bee colonies.
In 1972 there were 87,100 beekeepers with over one million people.
The last census of the German Beekeepers' Association, based in guard near Bonn in 2009 revealed a number of 81,500 members with approximately 614,000 people.
A total of worrying trend!
Bees had fallen in recent years in the headlines. In the United States was reported in 2006/2007 about a mysterious bee deaths and this immediately covered with a slogan: The "Colony Collapse Disorder" (CCD), to German so "bee colonies collapse". Of particular concern appeared the fast dying of bees, without prior symptoms: Just returned no more into the stick back and disappeared, her brood and honey behind. In other countries, like has been reported, but not as pronounced as in the United States. There supposedly about half of all states were affected with losses up to 80% of all bee colonies. (However, a loss in the fruit harvest z. B. in California remained below thank God from what is also attributed to the increase in the premium location for hives and z. T. unclear data material with possible exaggerations.)
To the bees dying but still made a great mystery and a lot of speculation about possible causes, it has long been clear one: Bees do not like agrochemicals and no monocultures.
In the USA, the cultivation of genetically modified corn and soy monocultures is predominantly known to have a higher pesticide tolerance. The pesticides for corn crops about to be injected directly into the corn flower. That bees have suffered greatly from the agrochemicals, is a truism. Also in Spain told me beekeepers from the loss of almost all peoples for pesticide use during the Orange Blossom.
Also in the Rhine valley it came in 2007 to a "mysterious" death of bees. Then it was proved in Braunschweig from studies of the Julius Kühn-Institut (Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants) that a maize seed-dressing agents called clothianidin was responsible light.
Thus, the reported information Wissenschaft 2008 on causes of bee mortality in the Rhine Valley from last year: 2007 was the first time the western corn rootworm occurred, after which the EU had prescribed quarantine measures in a policy. These existed in parts of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria in the fact that the sites of infestation and safety zones were established in which on the whole acreage, the seed was treated with an extra dose of the highly toxic mordant. Mechanically probably the venom was reacted at sowing into the environment.
Often beekeepers report of bees dying after authorities actions in connection with the shipment of agricultural poisons in any region for any actual reason. Therefore, it is very likely that the bees collapse syndrome each has specific, quite understandable reasons, and was not as mysterious as it has been widely shown.
In a very interesting report of TIME "The bee money and Death" , 4.2.2009 says Peter Rotkranz, Chairman of the Association of bees institutions and researchers at the University of Hohenheim even bees dying was a quite well-known phenomenon, "'Kahl fly the technical term '. The background: 'Bees are loyal public servants unto death.' If you end approaches, they fly away. Her last service relieves the people from the corpse and possible germs. If sick animals not soft, they beat their counterparts from the floor. "
In general, the situation in the USA is hardly comparable to that in Germany. While here outweighs the hobby beekeeping, the queen bees are there already inseminated artificially. The TIME continues: "In the monocultures, the use of pesticides routine, even the bees are preventively treated with antibiotics (as against foulbrood) or with pesticides, for example, against one of the biggest enemies of bees, the varroa mite."
The GA Bonner reported on 25.6. in the article "bees swarming to the City" also on the severity of Summertime and Brummer pronounced in monocultures, eg. example, the large-scale maize cultivation for biomass production to survive. Because found on the land bees under these conditions often no consistent, more dietary variety, but only flowers of a certain species in a certain time window. Therefore, when beekeepers is the trend "inner cities" becoming more popular, the same with their lime and acacia avenues and lush gardens often true bee havens. The beekeepers have even discovered for themselves the cemeteries, "the bees feel really comfortable there."
Also in Berlin is of course geimkert. Here is an interview of Nuoviso (Frank Hoefer) with the Berlin "city beekeeper" Thomas glove.
Also behind the former government district in the Bonn Rheinauenpark there amidst trees a bee house. There are regularly held meetings and demonstrations of beekeeping beekeeping activities for children: You can learn to carefully open honeycomb with a metal comb and then throw out even in the honey extractor honey from the honeycomb.
A current, otherwise not-to-find honey offer is due to the special tree population of the former German Federal Garden Show site the type of honey "Japanese Cherry Chestnut": In the first approach sweetly - almost dangerous kirschig but fine as Japanese porcelain, then a fuller bouquet develops on the tongue and wins of abundance. Following it will be noble-bitter: The Chestnut Blossom gains the upper hand.
I turn the lid of the jar with the words "Genuine German honey" and the characteristic Glasschraffur and a beehive including landscape encased in a honeycomb, which stands out in relief - the papierne authenticity seal tears while crackling. I turn the lid down and discover it, some pale yellow honey drops, stretch my tongue out to gently dab it with the tip of the tongue from lying in the lid cardboard disc, because my eyeballs fold abruptly inwards, because the cover, a message appears to me, something with "love" in red letters, I tear my cardboard disk as a far-sighted away from the nose and read:
"For a new love
It's never too late "
Ah yes!
Be "beekeepers now / In
and keep bees. "
www.deutscherimkerbund.de
Well, I think, for this reason and many others, I will then probably be soon "Beekeeper / In".
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Tags: bee , bees dying , beekeeping
It is a fatal mistake that we need more beekeepers. This is the well-known 101Dalmatiner effect that occurs after movies or 101Dalmatiner or Finding Nemo. Suddenly everyone wants a Dalmatian or a funny fish have - without thinking, however, if the future keepers also brings the expertise. The breeders are overrun, stormed the pet stores, but a year later the sweet little Dalmatian is suddenly a big dog and animal shelters are filled with dogs.
It does nothing for bees by buying yourself a beehive and this can then squander lack of expertise. So it becomes a source of infection for the neighborhood. And of those beekeepers we have more than enough.
What is needed is a thorough education even at the recreational beekeepers. Similar to the hunters or anglers every budding beekeepers should first undergo theoretical and practical training, with testing before it is released to the bees.
Bees are too important that they can be degenerated into a plaything.
The call that more young people should care for the important beekeeping comes from beekeepers, Mr. Maresch. Needless to say by saying that only a very foolish beings would define "a toy" a beehive. Is there something at all? I plan for. Example, my "buy and squander if necessary." No hives to leave, but of course only once to the training provided by the beekeepers around, a beekeeper going to hand u. Then later if necessary. My garden to ask someone for hives available. Would that be ok for you?
Dear Mr. Maresch,
in fact, are "wild bee" a problem because they spread diseases. If a Wildcat for example, has a foul brood, are not familiar with, and perhaps his peoples still wanders the worsed would be the case - and that is certainly already occurred frequently.
But the problem has been around for many years and it is a problem that is caused by unregenerate old curmudgeons who do not perform sufficient disease treatment, etc. (we've always done it is the häufugste response), the young, however, are usually up to date.
The young beekeepers who now go into beekeeping are organized predominantly in the Beekeepers Association. Take in contrast to the old men regularly attend courses. Also, the young usually after a few seasons in terms Varoatosebehandlung and early detection of diseases and plagues much further than their counterparts in the retirement age. Simply because they are better connected, warnings of outbreaks they achieve faster and they get through the Beekeepers Association today a better education than in all other generations. While no one is error free and I are beginning to undermine and error, but in terms of Varoabehandlung and Nosemaprävention has helped us older gentlemen I advise.
The Beekeepers Association urgently needs young! The bee will die without beekeepers. And as long as the old men to make their view yet? Our club has an average age of almost 70 and I hit with my 29 years the average already considerably. The gentlemen will stop in the next few years, because they simply can not. And then the 4000 handled by them peoples go under and just lost the knowledge, because there is no one to whom she can pass it on. Certainly not an isolated case.
I agree with you that we can do no wild beekeepers. The need nobody. But young people who have a serious interest in beekeeping, located before leaving animals to purchase over the Beekeepers Association to train and then begin their first experience to collect sometime after a few years, perhaps to serve more than 20 nations that are in the current situation golden.
Without the beekeeper bees dying out in our latitudes. That's for sure and unfortunately die at the moment already beekeepers from.
Thank you Mrs Beck for her blog post