By: Toni Burnham
This article originally appeared in the Autumn 2017 issue of BEEKeeping Your First Three Years
1. SPEAK UP FOR BEES AT HOME: Every day Community Covenants and Condo Associations make decisions to eliminate bee habitat and restrict green activities, including beekeeping. Put in a good word for bees at your building!
2. RESIST RESTRICTIONS ON URBAN BEEKEEPING: Cities like DC, NYC, and Chicago legalized beekeeping, but often local governments restrict it. Bees have been great neighbors for thousands of years. Stress that to know honeybees is to love them, and to want them nearby.
3. PLANT POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANTS: It turns out that bees love a lot of the plants that you do – herbs, fruit trees, and lots of veggies. Check out one of the regional gardening guides at www.pollinator.org/guides.htm!
4. GARDEN ORGANICALLY: Every neighborhood has thousands of households making millions of choices about what ends up in rivers and streams. Consumers are the main culprits in overuse, and chemicals flow in unpredictable, untested combos into green spaces. Keep your garden simple and safe for you AND the bees!
5. SUPPORT GREEN CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS: Buildings with efficient energy use, green roofs, and good water management create urban bee habitats and lessen the effects of CO on habitat change.
6. ENCOURAGE YOUR COMMUNITY TO PLANT TREES: In many city ecosystems, trees are the major contributor to pollinator forage. A single tree can have tens of thousands of flowers! Trees also provide habitat, clean the air, filter groundwater, and cool Summer days.
7. LEARN ABOUT BEEKEEPING: The bees depend on what your local plants do, so most beekeepers learn from other beekeepers where they live. Get in contact through your local extension office
8. WRITE A LETTER SUPPORTING POLLINATOR RESEARCH: The labs that research threats to bees are often closed and usually underfunded, leaving us with few clues about how to help our bees in changing times. Write your Congressperson to support bee research.
9. LOOK FOR LOCAL HONEY FARMERS MARKETS: Much of supermarket honey is imported. If you want happy healthy bees nearby, support your local beekeeper by buying locally.
10. TAKE A MOMENT TO SEE THE BEES: You won’t see our busy beautiful bees unless you stop to smell the flowers! Next time you pass an urban garden, pause and watch, and you will see the lovely, lively pollinators you are helping to protect.
