# The Importance of Local Bees



## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

After pondering on this, perhaps locally adapted mites are just as likely for the reasons mentioned on success, maybe even more so. Mites in tune with the bees natural breaks. A sustainable host/parasite relationship. Nothing new here, just speaking in terms of regional success.


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## J.Lee (Jan 19, 2014)

Some of my best hives are captured swarms from hives living in old and/or abandoned houses. I call them washed bees. Washed from mankinds manipulations and somehow living. Go figure. Bees adapted to the local area is always a big plus. Not to say you cannot bring in some good genetics though from some good queen producers.


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

When I started beekeeping and realized that my bees died in spite of treatments I asked for help and information to beekeeping in my area.
The only topic I heard of was mite disease and infestation and the treatments.

After reading Kirk Webster who described the mites as friends to the bees and beekeepers because of their help to select the strongest I changed my attitude towards mites.
I don`t fear them anymore. They are just a part of nature like any other insects. Doing their job to survive and if they kill their hosts it`s because the hosts are not in balance with their environment.

Now my believe is that bees which are treated have no real advantage because of this. The bees life is shortened and some of them are killed by treatments so in the end all hives show the same problems, treated or not, if they are not developing virus tolerance.
We must try to support the bees to develop immunity to mite disease.

In Europe, where there are no ferals, we must try to breed bees which show the "feral" behavior more, meaning the defense traits, for example the amount propolis or VSH.
Pollen, propolis and honey must be left to the bees.
Royal jelly is for the bees not for beauty of mankind.

It`s not expected from commercial beekeepers though. They breed for honey and gentleness. They need their income.
It`s the task of hobbyists and part time commercials.

A time starts just now when this is accepted and we, who want to raise more resistant bees, are not seen as nuisance any more. 
Beekeepers are more and more interested because treatments are in vain.

If I read the threads in forums I see that every fall the mite topic is the dominant one.
Doesn`t matter if treated or treatment free.
It does`t matter which bees, imported or local. The local are adapted but the introduced will learn it too.
It`s just easier and quicker to do it with locals. 

Insects are very tough and will survive even if mankind does not. The bee will and the mites will, too.

One problem is the global market. It distributes pests much quicker than in former times.
Adaptation needs it`s time.


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## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

Essentially we are breeding mites as well as bees. That was kind of what I was alluding to in addition to my initial post. Perhaps in a somewhat controlled or isolated environment, there is adaptation occurring by both bee and mite. A parasite that eliminates its host, where the host population does not reestablish itself at a rate consistent with maintaining population, is the equivalent of suicide for the parasitic species. As you suggested, there has to be balance, I just wonder which side of the relationship is adapting and to what degree? Then there is the viral aspect of the situation to consider and all of the variables involved. Interesting to think about anyway. Thanks for posting.


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

Hi Jeff,


> Perhaps in a somewhat controlled or isolated environment, there is adaptation occurring by both bee and mite.


Only if you leave them to themselves entirely.

The viral aspect in my eyes is prevented by beekeepers mostly.

I believe both sides are adapting. Survival being jeopardized is the trigger to adapt. The adaptation will never be complete because the environment changes all the time.


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## lharder (Mar 21, 2015)

Yes, I tend to think of it in terms of adaptation to the local viral environment. Moving too many bees around interregionally causes chaotic viral environments making adaptation difficult to impossible, even for bees that have some resistance traits to mites. It may account for some difficulties in performance when TF stock is moved from a local environment. 

But yes, there will be adaptation at many levels within a hive system. Systems that aren't stable collapse, and new systems are calved off of successful ones. The exact reasons aren't necessarily obvious. Bee and mite adaptation are in your face obvious, but other aspects not so much and require more digging to sort out. Their relative importance to each other is unknown.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

How are local bees going to become a reality in the almond plantations or blueberry bogs. The huge transportation operations certainly interfere with natural geographic isolation usually part of stable host / parasite relationships, but in this case the mass pollination is the whole reason for being of the majority of bees in US. 

Is there a realistic solution that can be economically propelled?


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## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

crofter said:


> How are local bees going to become a reality in the almond plantations or blueberry bogs. The huge transportation operations certainly interfere with natural geographic isolation usually part of stable host / parasite relationships, but in this case the mass pollination is the whole reason for being of the majority of bees in US.
> 
> Is there a realistic solution that can be economically propelled?


I'm guessing it was a rhetorical question, but the answer as of now is a resounding no. What I'm doing, I'm doing for my own enjoyment and learning experience. I'm fascinated with them. If I can help others out in the hobby aspect, that is good enough for me. It would take a change in the agriculture industry that involved stationary apiaries, and that doesn't appear to be the solution the industry is looking to. Is it possible? I think so.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Nordak said:


> I'm guessing it was a rhetorical question, but the answer as of now is a resounding no. What I'm doing, I'm doing for my own enjoyment and learning experience. I'm fascinated with them. If I can help others out in the hobby aspect, that is good enough for me. It would take a change in the agriculture industry that involved stationary apiaries, and that doesn't appear to be the solution the industry is looking to. Is it possible? I think so.


Yes, the last sentence was somewhat rhetorical. Collectively we have worked ourselves into some very awkward corners in more areas than just bees. It seems it is very strongly human nature to discount future pain _vis a vis_ the convenience of the moment. We probably have more than enough science but the study of motivating and manipulating **** sapiens may be far the greater challenge.


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## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

crofter said:


> We probably have more than enough science but the study of motivating and manipulating **** sapiens may be far the greater challenge.


Wonderfully put, and I couldn't agree more on all points.


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

Motivating yes.
Manipulating no.
I know, I´m hopelessly optimistic.


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## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

SiWolKe said:


> Motivating yes.
> Manipulating no.
> I know, I´m hopelessly optimistic.


Optimism is a healthy resistance trait. 😄


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## JWChesnut (Jul 31, 2013)

Folks do know what the Kern and Kings County Almond country looks like, don't they. Pix from Kings, north of Lost Hills, Almonds visible on the horizon.


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## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

JWChesnut said:


> View attachment 28074
> 
> 
> Folks do know what the Kern and Kings County Almond country looks like, don't they. Pix from Kings, north of Lost Hills, Almonds visible on the horizon.


Admittedly JWC, that is a huge eye opener, worlds apart from my own environment. That being said, is it possible some day in the future such a system I hinted at would be possible? Crofter touched on the solution there. I don't have answers, I'm a backyard beek looking to expand what I can, be it bees or knowledge to people who want it. That for me is a realistic goal. I'm taking baby steps to learn how my bees operate in my own little microcosmic section of the world. Don't look to me to tackle almond deserts. I can't start to comprehend how to undo the damage that's been done. It's fun to discuss such things, though.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

SiWolKe said:


> Motivating yes.
> Manipulating no.
> I know, I´m hopelessly optimistic.


Being manipulated certainly has some very negative reactions and well it should!

Sometimes instinctive reactions clash and challenge the very survival of a species. If its very instincts becomes the instruments of its destruction it might seem that manipulation of its instincts could be the lesser evil.

It is interesting to study the reorganization of agriculture in Cuba when the sheltering Soviet economy collapsed. Sugar plantations were immediately broken down into small labor intensive food production. Were the people manipulated? Our system does not lend itself to such powerful restructuring.

In any case it can be seen as a very difficult situation to rectify even if you knew the answer. Simplistic solutions to complex problems!


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## DaisyNJ (Aug 3, 2015)

crofter said:


> How are local bees going to become a reality in the almond plantations or blueberry bogs. The huge transportation operations certainly interfere with natural geographic isolation usually part of stable host / parasite relationships, but in this case the mass pollination is the whole reason for being of the majority of bees in US.
> 
> Is there a realistic solution that can be economically propelled?


No. 

Honey Bees (as we know them now) will never adapt to live and do what people expect them to do in unlimited ways - continuous brooding, end to end brooding to prepare for upcoming pollination contract, trips to pollination for few weeks, hauled to elsewhere, making 400lb honey per hive, feed on sugar & pollen sub. 

Not without heavy treatments, not without purpose built queens that lay like crazy and need replacements twice (or more) a year. 

Its not just Honey Bees, its almost every creature in nature.


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## squarepeg (Jul 9, 2010)

i think you make some really good points there daisy and i think most would agree with you. 

my 2 cents...

the legitimate needs of commercial agriculture for the services of those commercially available bees drives the management approaches, and those approaches shouldn't be judged as neither good nor bad, for they are what they are and as required to get that job done.

backyard apiaries are a different proposition altoghter. in some ways we enjoy certain luxuries with being stationary and in being content with a seasonal output from our hives. in my view these differences make it less stressful for the bees and for the beekeeper as well.

us small timers are also in a favorable position to play around with things like selection and queen rearing and the attempt at propagation of good traits. 

one problem is that many big bee suppliers are providing bees to the commercials and backyarders alike. with queens and packages being so darn affordable it makes it easy for many beekeepers to not bother with trying to sustain their stock from their own stock.

plus, and jmho, it basically takes some minimum number of hives, say 10, to have enough depth to really do the selection process any justice.

so for so many hobbyists it boils down to depending on others for procuring the best stock you can find, and as you found out that's not 100% guaranteed.

even when i graft from the best of my best, not each and every graft ends up performing to the standards of the breeder queen it came from. but many if not most do as expected and over just a few seasons i'm honestly measuring improvement in the overall quality of my stock.

i believe there's a good chance that most anybody doing the same would see similar progress with selection, but for many beekeepers there's not the time nor the inclination to try. and that's ok too because it's not cast in stone not everybody has to try. 

it kinda boils down to and as others have already pointed out we aren't all cast from the same mold, i.e. beekeeping is not a one size fits all endeavor. different doesn't alway mean bad. (and i don't mean to imply that is what you meant to imply daisy, i'm just thinking out loud here).


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

My view is not the same as Daisy.
I do things differently than the commercial operation being just a 
small hobby for me. Sure I grafted my own and mixed in with the local carnis
bees. Maybe this is my success so far for the last 4 years. Only treat when necessary and
on purpose to leave some mites in there to carry out my little bee experiment on.


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

@ squarepeg : thanks for sharing this thoughts. I´m with you.

@ daisy:


> Not without heavy treatments, not without purpose built queens that lay like crazy and need replacements twice (or more) a year.


There are areas already in this world which are without bees and people or machines are doing the pollinating. That was a result of bees dying of weakness and pests becoming virulent and mites immune to pesticides. And spraying, for sure.
No brood places left to wild bees so no wild bees survived, too. 
To mass pollinate with machines could be a solution, if bees are still respected as necessity elsewhere or maybe just as a part of nature and if they are allowed to survive.

To use machines will perhaps be the cheap version of pollination in future.
Big Honey producers or those who earn money from pollination will not like it but the trend is to do much work with robots. This will change the world.
And farmers would be allowed to use much more chemistry perhaps. This the companies would enforce.

I´m an optimist and still hope people will consume in such a way more organic food is planted. It´s us who make the world.


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## Riverderwent (May 23, 2013)

SiWolKe said:


> To use machines will perhaps be the cheap version of pollination in future.
> Big Honey producers or those who earn money from pollination will not like it but the trend is to do much work with robots.


More likely, gene splicing along the lines of CRSPR/CAS9 for the plants (and the bees). I understand that folks in in the Bay area are already working on this for VSH. Others are likely working on this from other angles as well.


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## DaisyNJ (Aug 3, 2015)

squarepeg said:


> .....
> 
> it kinda boils down to and as others have already pointed out we aren't all cast from the same mold, i.e. beekeeping is not a one size fits all endeavor. different doesn't alway mean bad. (and i don't mean to imply that is what you meant to imply daisy, i'm just thinking out loud here).


Exactly. I am not casting judgement on anyone much less pollination contracts or migration commercials. 

@SiWolKe, you are correct too, in that either machines or other alternative (and cheaper) pollination methods may come to market that takes traditional honey bee out of the equation. Large nesting, strong homing instincts and the fact that they collect nectar and store honey made Honey Bees a good candidate so far. But they cannot survive and perform in unlimited ways. 

As any globe trotting person will tell you, even for people with our available medication, excellent food, drinks etc, we get stressed out. Every time I goto different country, its takes about a week to fully settle in, unless the environment is heavily contained with food / water in similar quality as back home. And thats with all the wonderful medications for headaches, stomach ailments etc. 

Another big challenge is honey imports and prices. That puts tremendous additional pressure on large scale guys to squeeze more honey per hive or make up in that pollination contract or something else.


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## lharder (Mar 21, 2015)

If one is going for big commercial, then one is squeezed in all sorts of directions. 

When I think of the most successful farms, they tend to direct sale to the public. I hear prices for honey for major producers is in the range of 1.50 Canadian this year. Who wants to get involved in that? The size I grow too will be determined by how much honey I can sell directly.


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## AvatarDad (Mar 31, 2016)

lharder said:


> If one is going for big commercial, then one is squeezed in all sorts of directions.
> 
> When I think of the most successful farms, they tend to direct sale to the public. I hear prices for honey for major producers is in the range of 1.50 Canadian this year. Who wants to get involved in that? The size I grow too will be determined by how much honey I can sell directly.


Yes... you will not get rich selling truckloads of barrels to be turned into Honey-Nut Roundios, that is for sure. Selling "Raw, Local, here's my veil and smoker" honey seems to be about right, although you are never going to become rich doing that either. Rich and bees don't seem to work well with each other no matter the scale.

Those of us who love (or don't understand) marketing need to come up with a honey analog to "Ben and Jerry's". Good honey at a high price, sold by the ton. I'll contribute 50 pounds to that initiative. Heck, next year, I might have 100 pounds.


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## Hancock alternate beehive (Sep 13, 2016)

WELKOM !! 

I had the same "DU!!" moment some time back and have developed an entire beekeeping system around it.

I call my hive a "Hancock Alternate beeHive"

and my honey is call "tamer free" I suppose my beekeeping is also "tamer free beekeeping"

my bees are strong and completely self regulating, all from swarms coming through my garden. disease and infections are controlled by the bees themselves, the way it works is with the compost / wood chip i put in the bottom of the hive. this also have free movement of bugs from the surroundings into the bottom of the hive. 

it has take some time to perfect in my TBH , now in use in my HAH.

just thought I would share ..

have a look at my site. and please let me know what you think, and give a thumbs up on my youtube videos or down!!

Kevin H

http://ecape1820.tripod.com/alternativebeehive/


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## Hancock alternate beehive (Sep 13, 2016)

http://ecape1820.tripod.com/alternativebeehive/

sory I have just seen this on the top, I think this is how I am suposed to post URL 's ??

cheers Kev


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

Hancock alternate beehive said:


> http://ecape1820.tripod.com/alternativebeehive/
> 
> sory I have just seen this on the top, I think this is how I am suposed to post URL 's ??
> 
> cheers Kev


I would really like to read Mike Bisphams comment to this...

And the comment of our bee inspector who would likely have to protect me from the reactions of my surrounding bee keep folks...

The hives are nice, though. The idea, too. Something I would like to use in my own small forest.


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## mike bispham (May 23, 2009)

SiWolKe said:


> I would really like to read Mike Bisphams comment to this...


Hi Sibylle

I like it, but as you note access would be needed in the US and desirable here in the uk. I think much the same thing can be achieved using a standard removable frame system. Then you get the advantage of being able to take genetic material easily without reducing the colony - something that matters in my system. You don't have to keep poking around in there! But I do go through mine to save the queenless.

The idea of using smallish boxes to promote swarms is interesting. There might be a tendency toward raising strains that only thrive if they swarm regularly. I like to think I'm raising strains that cope with being big and staying put. They make more honey!

One of my core underlying strategies is to allow unlimited brood on the understanding that bigger (healthier) colonies make many more drones, and spread their genes that way. That's my main 'self-righting' mechanism - the stronger are represented in the next generation more than the weaker. I help that along by making increase from strongest genetic material.

But I do like the element of permaculture via minimal interference and minimal labour. Maybe the ancient Egyptian method of stacked clay pipes is worth looking at again! 

I'm interested in the idea of compost in the bottom. Doesn't it need watering? Can you tell us more about this Kevin?

Mike (UK)


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## Hancock alternate beehive (Sep 13, 2016)

Hi there

thank you for all the interest.

Ok on the information on the compost and woodchip.

so basically (I have more info on my site) the compost is made without air (anaerobic compost) opposed to being turned aerobic compost. this give you different bug and stuff??

it takes longer and is more labour intensive to get rite.

wood chip is hardwoods , a little soft but no evergreens.

so with a 1 to 7 ration it is put in wood chip on the bottom and compost on the top, but I am starting to thing it is better the other way round??

So I then weather my hives for a few month this is with the roof of, so it get rain, but is checked to keep moist. (yes I have a contraption for this. its a garden spray pump up bottle , but the spray is now a compost injector , with tem and water sensor.)

once the bees are in , I literally just drop the swarm in and leave the roof ajar until it is dark then screw it on and move it to where I want the hive to be.

the water given off from making honey seems to then be plenty to keep all the bugs and funky stuff happy..

have not had a HAH hive for more than 5 years , so cant tell you how long one load of wood chip compost will last??

hope this is of some help and interest..

O I do chuck wood lice and earwigs in as well, however , they will just self populate, given a few weeks..

this Bee habitat, is more a habitat than a beehive, as I have no Idea of what honey production would be from the side boxes, but realising they only cost £30.00 to make with all new lumber, you only need to have 1/10th the production to make them viable.

so the real idea here is to get people in urban areas to put one at the bottom of their gardens, the idea being the most plentiful and healthiest bees are in urban areas, How could we help them with out having to try and make every single person who has a hive a trained kitted out beekeeper??

the secondary thing is realising you don't actually need any smock or gloves or anything to rob the hive, this would also help bees in africa where they prety much destroy the swarm when the rob the honey..

so all happy hippy stuff as well , however I am afraid I am not much of a Hippy , being to pragmatic!!

thanks again guys for the interest..

Kevin


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

That`s very interesting, Kevin.
In germany we are allowed to use a bee basket , which supports the mikroflora immensely. Like in former times. If my strategy in a few years will produce more resistant stock, I want to try this.

I believe the compost and wood chips must be reached by the bees to have them sort it out. Otherwise you breed the wrong kind of fauna and flora like the hive beetle.
No mesh to separate like some have.
Sibylle


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

The idea of a compost and wood chips seems to be doable in certain
area of the world. Over here we have many different types of ants. My first
year aggressive AHB hive got devoured by the ants. I put them on top of an ant
hill without knowing about the infestation. Combine that with the mites the bees don't
even stand a chance. I've been thinking about using the local bees to hive them inside
a closet type big hive box and just let the comb hanging down like a hive inside a house wall.


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## Hancock alternate beehive (Sep 13, 2016)

SiWolKe said:


> That`s very interesting, Kevin.
> In germany we are allowed to use a bee basket , which supports the mikroflora immensely. Like in former times. If my strategy in a few years will produce more resistant stock, I want to try this.
> 
> I believe the compost and wood chips must be reached by the bees to have them sort it out. Otherwise you breed the wrong kind of fauna and flora like the hive beetle.
> ...


Yip you are quite right, there is nothing separating the bees from the wood chip.


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## 1102009 (Jul 31, 2015)

Kevin,
how do you keep off hornets or wasps from your hive boxes? Before bees are in?


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## lharder (Mar 21, 2015)

For those who are interested, someone posted on the TF facebook page posted a video of Tom Seeley's bee finding methods, in person. I really hope I can take the time at some point and try this. I would like to document feral bees in this area, if there are any. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=EAt0pkag9YY


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

One method I found out to document the carnis drones in the area or any other
bee specie is to graft the Cordovan daughters. Then have these daughters mated
with the local bees. Now you will see which specie is the dominant one in your local area. 
You can only do this with a Cordovan recessive gene queen.


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## ACBEES (Mar 13, 2009)

On the subject of commercial pollination, let me share what happened in my area. I live in the south plains area of the Texas panhandle. It is the largest continuous cotton growing area in the world. cotton plants required pollinators to produce a crop. From what I read, cotton honey was delicious and I am surrounded by miles of cotton fields. So I began my bee keeping with 10 nucs of Russians. Placed the hives near cotton fields. Day after day I checked the fields looking for my Russians working the blooms. Not a single bee was found. I investigated into why my bees were not working cotton blooms. Enter genetic plant engineering. All the cotton farmers had begun using patented engineered cotton seed which had been modified to be roundup resistant(herbicide) and to suppress nectar production during daylight hours(so as not to attract plant pests such as boll weevil) and to be self pollinating. This new seed was a boon to the farmers but bees were out of a job pollinating cotton. I see genetic engineered commercial plants that don't require pollinators as the trend for the future. I have read self pollinating almond trees have already been developed and are producing. I believe migratory beekeepers, like dinosaurs, will eventually become a thing of the past.


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## lharder (Mar 21, 2015)

Sounds kind of ominous in terms of habitat for pollinators.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

ACBEES said:


> On the subject of commercial pollination, let me share what happened in my area. I live in the south plains area of the Texas panhandle. It is the largest continuous cotton growing area in the world. cotton plants required pollinators to produce a crop. From what I read, cotton honey was delicious and I am surrounded by miles of cotton fields. So I began my bee keeping with 10 nucs of Russians. Placed the hives near cotton fields. Day after day I checked the fields looking for my Russians working the blooms. Not a single bee was found. I investigated into why my bees were not working cotton blooms. Enter genetic plant engineering. All the cotton farmers had begun using patented engineered cotton seed which had been modified to be roundup resistant(herbicide) and to suppress nectar production during daylight hours(so as not to attract plant pests such as boll weevil) and to be self pollinating. This new seed was a boon to the farmers but bees were out of a job pollinating cotton. I see genetic engineered commercial plants that don't require pollinators as the trend for the future. I have read self pollinating almond trees have already been developed and are producing. I believe migratory beekeepers, like dinosaurs, will eventually become a thing of the past.


You're wrong about the genetic engineering as far as nectar and pollination.... that was standard breeding that accomplished that. Also, for the almonds, it's not a self pollinating tree, it's a self compatible tree which means it doesn't need a different variety to act as a pollinator but still very much requires bees to pollinate it to meet acceptable yields and nut quality, just less bees per acre. Also, the nut is not the most demanded nut and with almond acreage increasing, the demand for hives is higher than it's ever been....


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## ACBEES (Mar 13, 2009)

The pollination and nectar suppression may have been accomplished through selective breeding however the herbicide resistance is genetically engineered. The seed is patented and runs about $350 for a 50lb. bag. Interesting side note to this roundup resistant cotton. After years of use of this cotton, the "weed" plants are also developing a resistance to roundup and other herbicides. For the last two years, cotton farmers here have had to hire "hoe hands" to weed the fields, a practice that went by the wayside with the introduction of herbicide resistant cotton. Another note, a fair amount of corn is grown around here under pivot irrigation. Bees will gather pollen from corn. The variety of corn seed used is referred to as "triple stack" referring to the systemic pesticides used to treat the seeds. As the seed germinates, the pesticide is taken up by the growing plant and eventually is found in the pollen.


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## ACBEES (Mar 13, 2009)

An article about almond trees

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt...le-almond-farmers-try-trees-that-dont-need-em


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## moebees (Sep 29, 2016)

ACBEES said:


> After years of use of this cotton, the "weed" plants are also developing a resistance to roundup and other herbicides. For the last two years, cotton farmers here have had to hire "hoe hands" to weed the fields, a practice that went by the wayside with the introduction of herbicide resistant cotton. .


That is happening with all roundup ready crops. We are getting lots of roundup ready weeds. And of course weeds are a human invention. By definition weeds are just plants growing where humans don't want them to grow. So the roundup ready crops become problematic themselves. The sugar beet growers are getting roundup ready rapeseed drifting into their fields and becoming weeds. Monsanto's advice? Pull them by hand.


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## JRG13 (May 11, 2012)

ACBEES said:


> An article about almond trees
> 
> http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt...le-almond-farmers-try-trees-that-dont-need-em


He farms 18 acres, and I bet his trees get pollinated by all the bees the other growers bring in. Also, they make it sound bees are the biggest expense in growing the crop, I think the bees are one of the least expensive inputs the farmer puts in.....


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## Nordak (Jun 17, 2016)

moebees said:


> That is happening with all roundup ready crops. We are getting lots of roundup ready weeds. And of course weeds are a human invention. By definition weeds are just plants growing where humans don't want them to grow. So the roundup ready crops become problematic themselves. The sugar beet growers are getting roundup ready rapeseed drifting into their fields and becoming weeds. Monsanto's advice? Pull them by hand.


That's an interesting unintended consequence. Monsanto in this case has created a more durable "weed."


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