Roberts,

Thanks for posting this article! How amazing it is that they have been able to make this kind of progress in identifying a cause. Now I hope they're able to figure out how to combat it.

It makes you wonder if the white nose disease killing bats might be something similar.

Dawn

This story was also a part of the CBS Evening News last night. A lack of honeybees is what originally brought me to Gardenweb, I was googling Hand Pollination of Squash and came across George's excellent thread in the Pumpkins,Squash and Goard Forum.

When I first bought our place in 1981 there was plenty of honeybees and I never even thought about them and at the time probably didn't know how important they were. Sometime in the 1990's the honeybees began disappearing. At about the same time a very old couple 4 doors down from me passed on and their house sold. I think they were either beekeepers or possibly had a natural hive on their property or maybe even in their attic. The new owners could of had the bees eradicated. This was before I had ever heard of the disease that was killing bees. Over the last couple of years I have seen honeybees only very rarely, thus the need to learn how to hand pollinate.

Just last week I noticed a honeybee working my squash and it was such a thrill to see a honeybee with his butt completely covered with yellow pollen! They've since moved on and haven't seen one since. There are sweat bees, bumblebees, wasps and other flying insects but they just don't do the job like honeybees...

Here is a link to the video of the report last night on the CBS Evening News. "Strong Clues in Bee Mystery" I want my bees back!

Keith

Keith, you might try to throw out a little clover seed. I have a white type of clover in my lawn and the bees seem to like it. There are all most no blooms this time of year, but early in the year the bees are all over it. I have tried to mow it very short around the house because our dog is allergic to bee stings. The clover I have can grow and bloom lower than I can mow, but mowing low helps.

Larry

I am taking a honey bee workshop In Tulsa starting October 23 by the Oklahoma Bee Keepers. I have had bees most of my life, but thought I needed a refresher cource to see what is new in technology. There still might be room for anyone else. It's 4 Saturdays from 9 till 2

Here is a link that might be useful: Oklahoma Bee Keepers

Robert thanks for posting the article. It's interesting that it is the most emailed article- there must be a lot of people concerned about there food supply.

I've linked the original scientific article below for anyone interested.

Here is a link that might be useful: Plos article on honeybees

My garden is very honeybee friendly. I continue to garden chemical and pesticide free. I plant most things to attract butterflies, and in doing so, attract tons of honeybees and bumblebees as well because my plants are full of pollen.

This time of year, they love the asters and the cosmos the most. They are literally covering them this year like they haven't in the last few years. If you plant fall blooming asters, you'll see lots of them. During the summer, they love the zinnias and cosmos, Tithonia aka Mexican Sunflowers, and of course, Sunflowers, Cleome, Bee Balm aka Monarda, Mountain Mint, herb flowers of all kinds, clovers of all kinds, Butterfly Bushes, Datura (yes, they will crawl down in those long tubular flowers to get the pollen), and they will crawl up the Salvia flowers to get it, as well as Milkweeds, Lantana, autumn blooming Mistflowers, and lots of native flowering forbs that have pollen available in large amounts. The Bumblebees, also good pollinators, love my Sennas, and I had hoards of them this year.

I was really concerned about CCD myself, so I have been watching the net for info on what caused it. They had speculated at first that it was caused by a virus or fungus, but now say it is both working together that causes CCD. Segregated, neither is harmful, but together they are apparently devastating. The next step now is finding a solution that is both environmentally friendly and effective.

Susan

Probably, if that's really the problem, it can be controlled with good colony hygeine, something I've been learning about in the last year.

I've kept bees since the 70's. It's amazing how one never "learns it all."

Here's great link. I bet Gary has heard of/ met this fellow.

George

Here is a link that might be useful: Little Creek Bee Ranch/ Ken Davis

Dr. Bromenshenk�s team received research money from Bayer Crop Science so the bee mystery is yet unsolved. Bromenshenk's study is now under scrutiny and rightfully so.

THAT IS NOT TRUE!! THe cause for the plight of honeybees is INDUSTRIAL BEEKEEPING PRACTICES--which include the making of packages, splits, queen rearing, moving colonies, preventing swarm, disturbing comb or any of their activities, etc--modern bee keeping practices stemming to Langstroth violate every rule bees have for natural immunity...these practices temporarily (and often terminally) remove bees natural defenses--packages are PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE and are NOT VIABLE COLONIES...splits are near as bad...broken bees...broken families...put honeybees under CONSERVATION and protect them from human interference...CCD is Nosema Ceranae--comes in packages and stored in bee bread...manifests itsself 2nd year comb....bees disappear before 2nd winter...All honeybees problems caused by weakness created by humans...humans create the colony state where varroa, hive beetle, the Nosemas, and all other diseases...if bees cant develop to the point of being able to recognize a problem (auto immune deficiency) they will never recover as a species...let bees be bees, and they will recover.

Thebeesneeds, who are you and where are you from?
Would you please quote some sources for your information, and tell us where in Oklahoma you are?

Sammy I was wondering the same things. Also I have relatives in rural AR. They tell me there has been huge die offs in the wild hives. How does Industrial beekeeping practices affect them. I could see how the virus and fungus could affect wild hives but not beekeeping practices. And maybe they aren't related. They tell me some of these hives have been in the area for years and now over the last 5-10 years have just died off. They have been in that area since the 1940's. I don't keep bees but enjoy the honey and watching them work. Jay

Sammy I checked and BeesNeeds only registered today. I'm wondering what their agenda is? Jay

That is fascinating! I wonder how they will combat the issue? Or if is one of those things that nature has to take it's course.

I can see how a split or division from an infested hive (infested with whatever disease) might spread the disease. But splits readily raise a new queen, without signs of trauma. "Not viable colonies:" I'm not sure what your definition of "viable" is.

On the site I shared above, Ken Davis shares some very good, in my mind, recent, findings about how to work with the bees. A good many beekeepers have abandoned, or cut way back on medications, as they learn to work with the bees natural instincts. But TheBeesNeeds statements do seem kind of abrupt & extreme when presented without more explanation.

I suppose most here have already heard about the latest discovery: parasitic flies. Below is a link. We live in a changing world. Beekeepers need to keep learning and adapt to the challenges.

George

Here is a link that might be useful: Link about parasitic fly infestations