We shouldn't eat honey!

Bumble Bees buzz so loudly it's quite alarming! But I love them dearly. If only you could stroke their furry backs.

Well a BB came into my kitchen and I had to trap it on the window to get it outside. I have a little container with a sliding side and have used this for years to catch absolutely everything. But BBs are quite big and I accidentally trapped its leg which caused it to cry out. Now the leg was trapped but not really hard, yet the BB made this awful loud noise which was like a baby crying! I've never heard anything like it. Quite upsetting to hear.

Has anyone else heard a Bumble Bee cry out like a baby?

If you haven't seen it then give it a go. You will be amazed.
My Garden of a Thousand Bees
BBC iPlayer.
Give it 5 mins and you won't be able to stop. 😍

Thank you Chestnut, I’ll be watching this. 🐝🐝🐝

The plant in our garden which bees seem to love best are the lavender bushes. I'm not sure if someone has a hive around here.

Elegran

Whenever I have been exhorted to "Save the bees" I have never though tit meant "Eat more honey" but "Plant things that feed all pollinators, leave wild corners in your neat garden, and don't kill the wild bees that make nests underground in your pristine but sterile lawn"

Rather than cutting down honey consumption and thus the number of hives of "domesticated" bees, in an attempt to lessen the competition on wild bees and other pollinators, we should be increasing the resources they all need to encourage them all both to produce honey and to establish wild colonies full of thriving nurseries of grubs.

If you see bumblebees flying low over your lawn then vanishing, take note of where they were last seen. If you investigate, you will probably find a little round hole among the grass roots, out of which a big mamma bumble will pop up and fly off. She is raising baby bumbles in there, who when grown will join her in pollinating your fruit bushes and collecting pollen to feed their larval siblings.

Whenever I have been exhorted to "Save the bees" I have never though tit meant "Eat more honey" but "Plant things that feed all pollinators, leave wild corners in your neat garden, and don't kill the wild bees that make nests underground in your pristine but sterile lawn"

Yes, that is what I thought too.

I've tried t turn part of the lawn into a "wildflower meadow" but, despite seeding it, caring for it, it tends to get taken over by undesirable weeds rather than lovely wild flowers. My very knowledgeable neighbour pointed out that poppies etc grow best in ploughed land, good soil, and our lawn was laid on about half an inch of top soil on top of builder's rubble.

However, we do have bee friendly plants- and weeds wildflowers in abundance elsewhere in the garden.

I rescue every bee which ventures indoors, if I can.
Spider catchers are useful for catching bees and sending them on their way.
I can't post a picture for some reason.
www.diy.com/departments/katcha-humane-big-bug-catcher-pink/5020873135512_BQ.prd?&&&&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20998096958&gbraid=0AAAAADt-XHnDOrCYXIgajUEbJI61r2jOZ&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI96Pe2fnOkwMVPJRQBh2-Yh2rEAQYBCABEgKK__D_BwE

Other makes available.

We mustn't forget that 'domestic' honey bees are also vital for pollination of commercial fruit producing crops. I suspect that if they were eliminated in large numbers it would seriously affect some of our food supplies as there wouldn't be enough wild bees to do the job (and yes, I do know that other pollinators exist)

There has to be a balance of some sort in this.

Also, raw honey is a valuable antiseptic and is used medically (we don't have to fly in quantities of overpriced New Zealand honey for this, we can use our own and cut some emissions ) Wild bees couldn't supply this.

Well, my eyes have been opened!
Yet as my wise mother used to say
"You buy cheap, you get cheap."
I have a jar of good Manuka honey that's over 10yrs old, that we only use for for sore, tickly thoats. It really seems to help too. 🐝

Whenever I have been exhorted to "Save the bees" I have never though tit meant "Eat more honey" but "Plant things that feed all pollinators, leave wild corners in your neat garden, and don't kill the wild bees that make nests underground in your pristine but sterile lawn"

Rather than cutting down honey consumption and thus the number of hives of "domesticated" bees, in an attempt to lessen the competition on wild bees and other pollinators, we should be increasing the resources they all need to encourage them all both to produce honey and to establish wild colonies full of thriving nurseries of grubs.

If you see bumblebees flying low over your lawn then vanishing, take note of where they were last seen. If you investigate, you will probably find a little round hole among the grass roots, out of which a big mamma bumble will pop up and fly off. She is raising baby bumbles in there, who when grown will join her in pollinating your fruit bushes and collecting pollen to feed their larval siblings.

Yes. This is something that vegans have known for ages.

But not in great quantities or commercially produced

Chestnut

Well I never knew this, but eating honey actually harms the eco system.

Google confirms it:
"Consuming honey, particularly commercially produced honey, can contribute to the decline of wild bee populations, largely because the honey industry drives a high demand for managed honey bees (Apis mellifera), which directly compete with wild, native bees for resources. While many people keep bees to "save the bees," conservation scientists argue that this often harms biodiversity because honey bees are agricultural livestock, not endangered wildlife."

There are over 270 species of bee in the UK and 24 types of bumble bee and they are endangered. So anyone who loves wild bees should try to save them rather than eating commercially produced honey.

Just to add, there is a programme on BBC iPlayer called 'My Garden of a Thousand Bees' which is absolutely amazing and deserves an award. Start watching and you won't be able to stop.

I watched the programme "My Garden of a thousand bees" and agree with you - it was absolutely enthralling!
As others have said, we just need to do what we can regarding the growing of flowers for all pollinators and there should be plenty for all.
I'm currently in the throes of converting half my lawn into a meadow - it's going to take a lot of patience, but in a few years I hope to watch the bees (and others) a buzzin'!

Gran22boys

How do we know if a honey is truly organic? I mean how do know what plants the bees have visited?

We, I've always thought that was a good question!

I hate honey - yukky and sickly taste. I never knew I was also saving the planet!! Good for me!

How do we know if a honey is truly organic? I mean how do know what plants the bees have visited?

www.msn.com/en-gb/news/insight/british-honey-found-tainted-with-potent-drugs/gm-GM540D8C87?gemSnapshotKey=GM540D8C87-snapshot-1&uxmode=ruby

I know someone who suffered a lot from hay fever, until it was recommended that he eat locally-produced honey, and it cured him.

Where has anyone said we must eat lab grown stuff?
Most on here have said avoid over processed supermarket food.
Without care for the environment you won’t have bees.

We mustn't eat honey, or meat, or eggs, etc etc etc
We must subsist on lab-grown stuff from the likes of Bill Gates
Get local honey and forget the nonsense.

I only buy Manuka honey and use it if I get a sore throat. Otherwise I'm not fond of honey and certainly don't buy it as a regular food - just for medicinal purposes.

ViceVersa

silverlining48

When my grandchildren were babies/ young they weren’t allowed to have honey. I was never sure why.

You're not supposed to give honey to babies under the age of one because there is a risk of infant botulism.

When my DD was a baby my MiL, who is a big fan of honey, scooped some honey on her finger and was about to stick it in her mouth! She didn't even ask me if it was ok and I only just got her away in time. We had been told not to give young babies honey and at the time she was being exclusively breastfed! MiL always thought she knew best!

I am allergic to 🍯 honey , it brings me out in hives. 🤣
Couldn’t resist.
I am allergic to bees and honey though.

I have it every day, I buy it from a local producer in a glass jar, not a plastic squeezy bottle from a supermarket

I'm presuming buying from local bee keepers is ok? I don't really like the taste of honey in its own but I do use it in breadmaking and cooking.

if god had not wanted us to eat honey he would not have given us bees

Thank goodness for my neighbour with a small holding. She gifts me honey at Christmas etc. I think it’s because I have to listen to their very noisy cockerel day and night !
My garden is also very popular with the bees 🐝