PLAN
BEE
THE INVALUABLE
GARDENER
AN INDIVIDUAL BEE CAN FLY AS FAR AS 5 MILES FROM THE HIVE TO SEARCH FOR NECTAR. A WHOLE COLONY WILL FLY A TOTAL OF AROUND 55,000 MILES TO MAKE JUST ONE POUND OF HONEY. A IT TAKES ABOUT 2,000,000 FLOWERS BEING VISITED BY BEES TO MAKE JUST ONE POUND OF HONEY.
GARDENING FOR BEES, BY PLANTING THE WILDFLOWERS THEY NEED TO POLLINATE, IS A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TO HELPING THE AMOUNT OF BEES IN BRITAIN TO INCREASE.
A HIVE OF BEES WILL FLY 90,000 MILES (THIS IS THE EQUIVALENT OF 3 ORBITS AROUND THE EARTH) TO COLLECT 1 KILOGRAM OF HONEY.
BEES COLLECT ON AVERAGE 66 POUNDS OF POLLEN PER YEAR AS A HIVE. POLLEN IS THE MALE GERM CELLS PRODUCED BY ALL FLOWERING PLANTS FOR FERTILIZATION. BEES USE POLLEN AS A FOOD SOURCE AS IT IS ONE OF THE RICHEST AND PUREST NATURAL FOODS.
AN AVERAGE TRIP OUT OF THE HIVE TO POLLINATE FLOWERS AND COLLECT NECTAR WILL TAKE A WORKER BEE BETWEEN 30 MINUETS AND 4 HOURS.
BUT IT IS OFTEN FORGOTTEN HOW MUCH BEES DO IN OUR GARDENS AND CROP FIELDS TO HELP US.
BEES ARE EXCELLENT COMMUNICATORS AND INFORM THEIR HIVES OF THE NECTAR RICH FLOWERS. THEY ARE ONE OF THE FEW SPECIES WHO WORKS AS A COMPLETE TEAM.
THEY ARE THE INVALUABLE GARDENERS THAT NEED OUR HELP. BEES POLLINATE FLOWERS WHEN THEY VISIT THEM TO GATHER NECTAR. THE POLLEN FROM THE FLOWERS STICKS TO THE LEGS OF THE BEE. THE BEE THEN FLIES TO ANOTHER FLOWER AND THE POLLEN THAT WAS STUCK TO BEE WILL GET BRUSHED OFF ONTO THE NEW FLOWER.
WITHOUT BEES TO POLLINATE THE FOOD CROPS IN OUR FIELDS WE WOULD LOSE 1 THIRD OF ALL THE FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES WE EAT EVERYDAY.
IF BEES DIE OUT, THEN WE WILL HAVE TO POLLINATE THE CROPS BY HAND, OR GO WITHOUT.
THE FLOWER IS THEN POLLINATED AND WILL BEGIN DEVELOPING SEEDS AND FRUITS.
BEES ARE VERY OBSERVANT IN CHOOSING THE KINDS OF FLOWERS THAT GIVE THEM GOOD REWARDS, THIS IS WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT TO PLANT THE FLOWERS THAT THEY NEED.
THE VALUE OF BEE POLLINATED CROPS IN BRITAIN EACH YEAR IS £220,000,000.
BEES WILL VISIT BETWEEN 50 AND 1,000 FLOWERS, GATHERING NECTAR AND POLLEN ON ONE TRIP OUT OF THEIR HIVE. THIS MEANS THAT A SINGLE BEE ON AVERAGE WILL POLLINATE ABOUT 500 FLOWERS.
90 % OF THE WORLDS PLANTS ARE POLLINATED BY BEES. WITHOUT BEES WE WOULD LOSE CROPS AND THE FLOWERS WE SEE IN OUR HEDGEROWS, PARKS, TOWNS, CITIES, NATURE RESERVES, AT FLOWER SHOWS AND GARDENS. EACH WORKER BEE IN A COLONY CAN MAKE BETWEEN 7 TO 14 TRIPS OUT TO VISIT FLOWERS IN A SINGLE DAY.
THERE ARE 1,000,000 HECTARES OF GARDENS IN THE UK WHICH FORM AN AREA BIGGER THAN ALL THE PARKS AND NATURE RESERVES PUT TOGETHER.
IF EVERYONE WAS TO GARDEN WITH BEE FRIENDLY PLANTS AND WILDFLOWERS, THIS WOULD RESULT CREATE A VAST AMOUNT OF FLOWERS FOR BEES TO POLLINATE.
THE MODIFIED FLOWERS MOST PEOPLE USED IN THEIR GARDENS OFTEN PRODUCE NO NECTAR OR HAVE DOUBLE HEADED FLOWERS THAT MAKE ACCESS FOR BEES IMPOSSIBLE.
THE AVERAGE COLONY HAS 25,000 WORKER BEES, WITH EACH BEE MAKING 10 TRIPS OUT A DAY, THE COLONY WILL POLLINATE 250,000,000 FLOWERS.
BEES POLLINATE AGRICULTURAL CROPS, HOME GARDENS, ORCHARDS AND WILDLIFE HABITATS. AS BEES TRAVEL FROM BLOSSOM TO BLOSSOM IN SEARCH OR NECTAR, THEY TRANSFER POLLEN FROM PLANT TO PLANT, THUS FERTILIZING THE PLANTS AND ENABLING THEM TO BEAR FRUIT.
BEES FAVOUR WILDFLOWERS AND PLANTS AS THEY OFFER A READY SUPPLY OF POLLEN AND NECTAR.
WILDFLOWERS ARE JUST AS BEAUTIFUL AS MODIFIED ONES AND ARE MUCH EASIER TO GROW AND UPKEEP.
BIRDS AND SMALL MAMMALS FEED OFF THE BERRIES AND SEEDS THAT RELY ON BEE POLLINATION. THEY WOULD DIE OF HUNGER AND IN TURN THEIR PREDATORS, THE OMNIVORES OR CARNIVORES THAT CONTINUE THE FOOD CHAIN WOULD ALSO STARVE.
WE DON’T REALISE THE AMOUNT OF POLLINATION THAT IS PERFORMED BY BEES. THE SIGNS OF INADEQUATE POLLINATION ARE OFTEN MISINTERPRETED AS WEATHER PROBLEMS OR DISEASE OF THE CROP, BUT IT IS ACTUALLY DUE TO THE LACK OF BEES AROUND TO POLLINATE.
Find out more and how you can help at WWW.PLANBEE.CO.UK