Alice C.’s Post

What's really going on with these wonderful insects that both pollinate our crops and provide us with useful products like honey? My latest article for ThinkLandscape takes a look.

♻ Les Etrebières’ meadows were grazed by cattle over decades. Before that, there were vines, vegetable and fruit crops to feed the hamlet and cereal to make flour in the mill. This crop diversity requires manpower and a variety of know-how but it creates a beneficial circular economy within the farm with animal manure feeding the soil and grass feeding the cattle, poultry eating crop residue and maintaining pest population low, trees providing shade and biodiversity habitat... 🍎 The eight acres of east-facing slope are perfect for orchards and fifty trees were planted so far. The rows were traced on contour, following the hill’s natural terrain for better rainwater retention. There are different fruit varieties on each row with a similar harvest period. We will harvest apricots, plums and red fruits in the July row, and plums, apples and pears in the September row and so on. A vegetable patch will provide produce for visitors and surplus will be transformed. 🐸 A natural spring at the top of the plot irrigates the meadow, orchard and vegetable patch on its way down to the river. And a biodiversity pond doubles as an infinity pool for visitors. 💧At the foot of the hill are six acres of wet meadow with a stream running through. In winter, the river overflows so crops cannot be grown there but the land provides habitat for biodiversity, stores precious water and cattle can graze under the trees. 🦌 The last eight acres are arable where crops can be grown. Woods surround the plot and provide habitat for wildlife, with deer loving to munch on our baby trees! Sharing is not easy…   🌼 To find out more about the project --- MoulindesEtrebieres.com 🌼 To follow our news :  LI  @MoulindesEtrebieres  IG, FB, X @etrebieres #CareerChange #Permaculture #Agritourism #Agriecology #CraftWorkshops #HolidayRental

The buzz around "save the bees" is crucial, but it's important to understand the nuances. While honeybee populations are stable, wild bees, essential for ecosystems and agriculture, face immediate threats. Over a quarter of North America's bumblebee species are in decline. Here's the buzz breakdown: 1. Diverse Bee Species: Western honeybees are just one of many bee species. Wild bees, often neglected, play a vital role in pollination. 2. Wild Bee Decline: Over 25% of North America's bumblebee species are declining. The rusty-patched bumblebee and others face challenges. 3. Agricultural Impact: Wild pollinators contribute as much as domestic honeybees to crop value, with honeybees not always being the most efficient pollinators. 4. Supporting Diversity: Wild bees pollinate native plants, crucial for non-agricultural landscapes. Remember, wild and domestic bees require different support. As we advocate for bee conservation, understanding the intricate balance between wild and domestic species is key.

🐝Today marks Bees Needs Week!🐝 Pollinators like bees are crucial for the environment and food production. Did you know that Almost 90% of wild plants and 75% of leading global crops depend on animal pollination? One out of every three mouthfuls of our food depends on pollinators such as bees. Crops that depend on pollination are five times more valuable than those that do not. Bees' Needs Week is an annual event coordinated by Defra to raise awareness and encourage actions to support pollinators. They share 5 simple actions that could help. 🐝Grow more nectar-rich flowers, shrubs and trees. Using window or balcony boxes are good options if you don't have a garden. 🐝Let patches of garden and land grow wild. 🐝Cut grass less often. 🐝Do not disturb insect nests and hibernation spots. 🐝Think carefully about whether to use pesticides. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/eDBpqpuu #BeesNeedsWeek #Biodiversity #idverdeUK

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF BEES WENT EXTINCT? The #socio #economical and #biodiversity benefit of the #bees were recorded for so many years. The #most of the #most benefit of the #bees is its ability to support and stabilize our #FoodSystem! Before we explore what would happen if bees went extinct, let's recall why bees? Insect pollination of agricultural crops is a critical ecosystem service. About 80% of indigenous flowering plants in Africa benefit from honey bee pollination, & approximately one-third of all food produced is the result of commercial honey bee pollination. The fees are suffering a magnitude of problems, including #parasitic mites, honey bee #diseases, loss of #habitat or flowerless landscape, #inability of honey bees to work at #LowTemperature and adverse #climatic conditions, #AirPollution, but most importantly the over-use of #pesticides. According to The Guardian (April 2021), the toxic impact of pesticides on bees and other pollinators has doubled in a decade and because of this we are losing bees at an alarming rate. However, Where would we be without bees? As far as important species go, they are top of the list. They are critical pollinators: they pollinate 70 of the around 100 crop species that feed 90% of the world. Honey bees are responsible for $30 billion a year in crops. That’s only the start. We may lose all the plants that bees pollinate, all of the animals that eat those plants and so on up the food chain. Which means a world without bees could struggle to sustain the global human population of 7 billion. Our supermarkets would have half or less the amount of #fruit and #vegetables. What else do you think would happen if bee went extinct? Leave your comment for the interactive discussion. Read the detailed literatures through: https://lnkd.in/dCCNByQ9 https://lnkd.in/dxmCZq-Y https://lnkd.in/deMwh5T2

Pollinators play a role in your garden that you might not even *bee* 🐝 aware of! So this #NationalPollinatorWeek, we want to share some fun facts on our flying friends. - Bees are the most commonly-known pollinator (with over 4,000 types in the US), but butterflies, hummingbirds, and beetles are also pollinators - Native Monarch butterflies pollinate many different types of wildflowers and create biodiversity - More than 100 US crops depend on pollinators, such as almonds, berries, and squash Want to see pollinator butterflies in your garden? PHS experts recommend planting milkweed or purple coneflower 🦋

Entomophily-Pollination By Insects ✓Bees are important pollinators -More than 70% of flowering plants on Earth need pollinators to produce fruit and seeds, including many of the crops we rely on for food. ✓Bees perform 80% of pollination-Bees pollinate flowers that are full of nectar, brightly colored, sweetly aromatic, open during the day, and provide landing platforms. ✓Honey bees are considered the finest pollinators-Honey bees generate honey and other hive products that add to farm income. ✓Bee populations are declining worldwide-This decline threatens to cause a severe loss to both the crops humans grow for food and the overall biodiversity of plants on Earth. #Honeybees #PomegranateFarming #Pollination #Naturalpollinationbybees

🌍🐝 The Declining Butterfly Effect 🦋🚜 Really enjoyed writing this piece for Wicked Leeks, in which I explore the way our food and farming policy is currently failing UK pollinators. Do read the full article if you're interested 👇 https://lnkd.in/dm-unA5D

🌼 Did you know: #Pollination is a #teamsport ... ...highly dependent on wild bees and other insects. 🦋🐞🐝🐜 As studies show (Garibaldi et al. 2013, 2016, 2017), wild insects pollinated crops more effectively! An increase in wild insect visitation enhanced fruit set by 👉🏼 twice as much as an equivalent increase in honey bee visitation. Visitation by wild insects and honey bees promoted fruit set independently, so pollination by managed honey bees supplemented, rather than substituted for, pollination by wild insects. We also know that crop yield increases linearly with #pollinator_richness (no. of different species). The enhancement of #habitats for wild pollinators is the main strategy to increase flower-visitor richness. The results show that new practices for integrated management of both honey bees and diverse wild insect assemblages will enhance global crop yields.... I was able to photograph this tiny wool-carder bee (Anthidium punctatum) sleeping on lavender blossoms. Only with diverse agricultural landscapes free of pesticides will she be able to contribute to the abundance of our food supply. Happy world bee day! #recelioUzzy

Agroecology is more than sustainable farming. Its principles also center economic and environmental justice, and you don't have to be a farmer to incorporate these principles into your life. Here are some ideas for how you can be a steward of agroecology: 1) Practice Leave No Trace principles when you visit public lands to keep ecosystems intact and limit human impacts. 2) Buy locally grown or raised food whenever possible. Locally produced food has a smaller carbon footprint than imported goods, and often allows you the opportunity to build community relationships. 3) Leave areas of your yard wild or install pollinator strips to provide safe havens for native pollinators and promote biodiversity. 4) Join a community gardening program to learn how to grow your own food. How might you incorporate #agroecology into your life?