Conserving the Planet for the Future
Weeks Honey Farm knows it takes more than soil, water, and sunshine to make our world green. At least 30% of the world’s crops and 90% of all plants require cross-pollination to spread and thrive, and bees are our most important pollinators.
Unfortunately, bee populations here and around the world are in decline. This has been the trend over several decades. We have seen the decline first-hand over our lifetime.
Environmental changes have caused some flowers to bloom earlier or later than usual, leaving bees with fewer food sources at the start of the season. Bees suffer habitat loss from development, abandoned farms, and the lack of bee-friendly flowers. Some colonies collapse due to plants and seeds treated with pesticides, or harmful parasites like mites. It is not a one-cause issue, but the culmination of multiple causes of bee colony decline. This will have a damaging effect to our ecosystem and access to food. Weeks Honey Farm works to turn the tide on this calamity.
The good news is there are ways you can help bee populations bounce back. Planting a bee-friendly garden will not only lead to healthy and vibrant plants, it will ensure that bees continue to play their critical role in our ecosystem. Supporting organizations like Weeks Honey Farm, or your local beekeeper will enable bees to survive and thrive- even against these growing obstacles.
Our Pledge:
Protecting Bees & The Environment
Here are the top five reasons honey bees are important to the environment, and why our honey farm and our partners are important to maintain a healthy environment. We have stood by these important sustainability pillars since 1960.
5. The Importance of Pollination
What’s your favorite summer crop? If you love apples, melons, cranberries, asparagus, or broccoli, you should appreciate our fuzzy, insect friends.
To germinate, these plants require the transfer of pollen from the male part of the flower (the anther) to the female part (the stigma). As bees move from flower to flower in search of nectar, they leave behind grains of pollen on the sticky surface, allowing plants to grow and produce food.
Honey bees are busy workers- pollinating billions of plants each year, including millions of agricultural crops. In fact, pollinators like bees play a key role in one out of every three bites of food we eat. Without them, many plants we rely on for food would die off. When you support our farm you support the industry closest to helping honey bees survive.
4. Providing Wild Plant Growth and a Strong Eco-sysytem
It’s not just farm-grown fruits and vegetables that rely on pollinators to thrive. Many species of wild plants depend on insect pollinators as well. Honey bees are responsible for the production of many seeds, nuts, berries, and fruit, which serve as a vital food source for wild animals. Not just humans are affected by decreased honey bees but the entire animal population.
3. A Critical Food Source for a Variety of Animals
Honey bees produce honey to feed their colonies during the cold winter months. Humans have harvested honey for thousands of years, but we aren’t the only ones who consider it a healthy sweet snack. Critters like birds, racoons, opossums, and insects will raid beehives for a taste of nutritious honey (and bee larvae).
All bees themselves are also a part of the food chain. At least 24 species of bird, including the blackbird, ruby-throated hummingbird, and starling, prey on bees. Many spiders and insects, like dragonflies and praying mantises, eat bees as well.
2. Creating Wildlife Habitats
Honey bees are known for their elaborate hives, but they also help build homes for millions of other insects and animals. Their role as pollinators is vital in the growth of tropical forests, savannah woodlands, and temperate deciduous forests. Many tree species, like willows and poplars, couldn’t grow without pollinators like bees.
Even your own personal garden serves as a home for hundreds of tiny creatures, from birds and squirrels to thousands of tiny insects. If honey bees disappeared, the animals that depend on these plants for survival would vanish as well. This would be a mass extinction within just a few years. This destruction could not be repaired.
1. Healthy Biodiversity
As pollinators, honey bees play a part in every aspect of the ecosystem. They support the growth of trees, flowers, and other plants, which serve as food and shelter for creatures large and small. Honey bees contribute to complex, interconnected ecosystems that allow a diverse number of different species to co-exist.
There is no doubting the importance of bees to our food supply. Without them, our gardens would be bare and our plates empty. Grocery stores would become a distant memory and starvation would be a common issue worldwide. But we should also remember the other reasons bees are important to the environment.
When you support Weeks Honey Farm and others like ours you support American Honey Bees and the Beekeepers who work to save the bees and the future of our children.