Trees for Bees, Thee and Me

We all talk a lot about flowers for bees in the garden. Which makes me think of plants and bushes. But there are many lovely trees for bees.  There are a few just showing their stuff in my gardens now. Especially in the dawn before the bees are even awake. Bees are late risers. Lets look at a few trees for bees in The Kitchen’s Garden.

I have planted two young weeping cherries. 

The peach tree is blossoming well this year. 

Why is it that blossoms are all pink or white?
This  is an old peach tree,  I will plant another one this year, to help with its pollination.

The Flowering Pear is not quite out yet which is good as we need a succession of blossoms

and there are three of these, flowering pears grow fast. The sun is up Daisy is yelling we must hurry. We also have five pear trees that are budding but not quite ready for pollination.  The bees have a feast ahead of them.

The old cherry had a terrible year last year, no pies for us. No jam. But this year it is looking promising.  And the two young cherry trees are coming along fast.  These are Bings. 

A ways to go yet.

The old apple trees are even further behind. The young apple trees are doing very well but you all know what they look like.  Apple blossom is a huge favourite. And if we look carefully below, somewhere in there will be… Waldo. The Hackberry trees are only two years old.   They need bees for pollination. There is such a thing as hackberry honey you know.  They grow tall and strong.  As well as being ideal for bees, the butterflies like the nectar and in the winter the berries hang there being eaten by the birds. So a good tree for all. Plus it is a North American native. 

Just because Mama in nearing her confinement (how is that for delicate) she still has time for a wee chat with Queenie, who she still thinks of as one of her girls.  She is not above giving him a good box around the ears every now and then either.

The Maple and Pussy Willow is almost finished with,  the Forsythia is in full swing, the Lilacs are budding and the Dogwood will be out in a while, so the bees will have a reasonable spring run with trees this year. And that is only in my garden I am sure you have seen bees about a few of your trees too.

So of you have a corner somewhere in the world plant a tree for the bees.

I have a theory that wild and domestic bees are starving and vanishing from lack of fertile organic flowers more than anything else. I know that there are many studies to find a scientific explanation for their decline, the new mites, moths  and diseases. But if a hive is healthy and strong it can repel most things. As is true of a human  body.  Remember growing organically means getting ahead of the problem.  So we strive for health first.  To be healthy we need to eat good clean food, it is so obvious. And it is the same for the bees. Too many roadsides are mown, too much land is in industrial horticulture, so much wild  flower land has gone under. Not enough vegetable gardens in back yards.

Also Genetically Modified crops have been reconfigured to be pest and round up resistant. So a farmer can spray less. This is good right?  But they do not produce  fertile nutritious pollen. The seed in a Genetically Modified crop is designed to terminate, so a farmer cannot collect and grow his seed, he has to reorder seed from the Big Lobby M company. So what of the pollen? The dramatic rise in these GM pollens on a graph,  directly dogs the decline in bee numbers.  As GM crops rise so do bee numbers decline. None of these crops need bees as a pollinator.  Of course as usual no-one really wants to know this. Round-Up ready crops are big business and they don’t need bees anyway.   But bees do need the good stuff.  So if you have a spot to plant a tree that has flowers for bees then you are directly helping the bees gain back some ground lost to industrial farming, sprays and dandelion free lawns.

Also I might add that the GM corn is causing a dismaying decline in the fertility of cattle too.  So it is in your beef, pork and corn syrup and soy milk, etc. Now what is that doing to OUR health? This is something that has never been researched. And this is why I do not eat or drink processed foods and I grow my own grass fed beef and milk.

Oops I wandered into a rant.

The GOOD NEWS is that the postcards have finally arrived.  The printers did a great job even though they lost the order twice. The cards are gorgeous and I shall now stamp the postcard stamp on the back of each one, collate them and make up the bundles for our lucky winners, Anna, Spree and Chris.

And yes you can buy a set. They are US$14.50 for a set of 16. If you are interested email me and I shall send you your cards.  Now that is exciting.

Another glorious morning is here and also my carpenter is arriving shortly. He is making a big Cave store room in my basement. A cool dark room to store all the preserves, vinegars, cheeses, honey, Wine. All that good stuff.  Now that IS exciting. It is being made from recycled chemical free barn timber and I shall take some shots for you today. It is going to be wonderful.

How sad that my visitors will have to put  up with hammering and bashing and building and the carpenter’s commercial radio all day.

Good morning.

celi