what you can do to help bees

Whilst The Co-operative and others are investigating what could be causing the disappearance of bees, here are some simple (and fun) things you can do to learn more and help save the bee.

Each and every one of us can make a difference, even if it's just by encouraging bees into our own back gardens, patio pots and window boxes

Petition for research into pesticides

There are numerous theories as to why the honeybee population has declined so alarmingly in recent years. As much as £10 million has been set aside to fund research into the causes of bee deaths in the UK. However, there has been no commitment to fund research into the potential effects of pesticides, despite growing anecdotal evidence that this may be a factor.

The Co-operative is therefore petitioning the Government for research into the impact of pesticides on bees.

Show your support – add your name to our petition calling on the UK Government to carry out a systematic review of the impact of pesticides on honeybees.

Sign the petition.

Brighten up your garden with some bee-friendly flower seeds

Plant wildflower seeds in your garden, patio pots or window boxes to provide essential nutrition for bees. A list of examples of wildflowers that bees find attractive is below.

Other tips for a bee-friendly garden…

allow a patch of grass to grow long and densely plant an area of your flowerbed to provide bees with shelter from the rain or a sudden drop in temperature
provide water for bees to drink – this can be as simple as a shallow edged dish of water with pebbles in it to help bees climb in and out
reduce the use of pesticides in your garden – find out more with our list of facts.
do not keep unwashed honey jars outside the back door. Honeybees may feed on the remaining honey and overseas honey can contain bacteria and spores that are harmful to the bees, which they may then take back to the rest of the colony
protect swarms – if you see a swarm of bees, contact the local authority or the police, who will contact a local beekeeper to collect the swarm and give it a new home.

Install a bee box in your garden

Welcome bees into your garden by getting a bee box. This helps bees to shelter from the rain or from a sudden drop in temperature. Encouraging bees into your garden should also help you get bumper crops of fruit and vegetables.

As part of Plan Bee, The Co-operative has teamed up with GoneGardening.com to give members a 15% discount on FSC-certified bee boxes – £8.19 (reduced from £9.64, plus p&p). Find out more and take advantage of the offer.

Encouraging native bees into the garden with a bee box should help you garden bloom. This novel bee box is made out of FSC-certified wood, has a metal-pitched roof and is packed with pieces of bamboo that provide the ideal nesting site. NB: The 'solitary' bee species that use these nests won't swarm and don't sting.

Watch our films

The Co-operative has commissioned two short films about bees, and has distributed a feature-length documentary:

Watch a film about The Co-operative’s Plan Bee campaign (5 minutes long)
Learn more about what’s happening to bees in the UK at the moment – and look out for the celebrity beekeeper. Watch the film. (15 minutes long)
Watch a preview of the Vanishing of the Bees documentary

Take up beekeeping

If you’re really interested in helping bees, why not think about becoming an amateur beekeeper?

For more information, advice and training, contact your nearest beekeeping association.

Download a list of UK beekeeper associations [PDF 25KB] and see our relevant links below .

The plight of bees – read all about it

Author and Guardian journalist, Alison Benjamin, last year released ‘A World Without Bees’, which looks at the strange case of the vanishing western honeybee leading to fears that we are dangerously out of kilter with nature. This compelling book examines the honeybee's fragile existence – and why the world can't survive without them.

Find out more and buy the book (opens in new window).

Sign-up to our campaign group

Relevant links

There are many organisations who do good work around bees. Here are just a few – if you would like your organisation to be listed here, please get in touch.

The Co-operative is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Bee-friendly flower seeds

Below is a list of flowers that are good for bees (*denotes native to UK):

Alyssum, Annual coreopsis, Annual scabiousm, Bee sage, Borage, Candytuft, Catmint, Chives, Clover, Comfrey*, Common poppy*, Corn chamomile*, Corn marigold*, Corncockle*, Cornflower*, Dahlias, Deadnettle*, Devil's bit scabious*, Field Woundwort*, Foxglove*, French marigold, Goldenrod*, Greater knapweed*, Larkspur, Lesser snapdragon*, Lungwort, Meadow clary*, Mexican hat, Nasturtium, Round-leaved fluellin*, Sage, Sea holly, Sedum, Spiked speedwell*, Sunflower, Sweet William, Teasel*, Thistle*, Tobacco plant, Viper's bugloss*, Whorled clary*, Wild clary.

Buy a discounted bee box

You can get 15% off (£8.27 plus p&p, reduced from £9.73 plus p&p) this specially selected bee box as part of Plan Bee.

Directions

1. click on the 'buy now' link below
2. on the left-hand side of the page, type in 'coop' and 'pa06' in the two eValue (discount code) boxes and press Continue
3. a message should appear stating that you have successfully entered the discount code. Press continue and you will arrive back on the homepage
4. click on the bee box link in the featured products, or search for 'bee box'
5. this 15% discount is valid for 'Bee Nesting Box with Zinc Roof'

Many insects found in gardens have bad reputations as being pests, and so are subjected to an increasing number of chemicals to rid them from gardens.

Chemical control is often harmful to the environment and other wildlife that may not be the problem species the chemicals are aimed at. Many of the species persecuted are not actually harmful to gardens, or can be effectively controlled using other measures such as:

natural predation – by encouraging natural predators of any specific pest into the area, the pest in question will be controlled. Ladybirds, lacewings, frogs, hedgehogs and birds are all great at limiting numbers of garden pests such as aphids and slugs.

hand-picking – although time consuming and intensive, removing areas of infestation by hand may be beneficial to the rest of the plot.

water spraying – spraying with water or with a light soap solution has been used for some time to remove aphids and similar species from plants.

organic deterrents – many plant oils and other organic based substances are totally environmentally friendly as they use plants natural resistance to attack, but have a deterrent or lethal impact on specific garden pests.

biological control – whitefly can be targeted by a parasitic wasp, Encarsia. This works by attacking and paralysing the nymph of the whitefly reducing the number of whitefly and its impact on vulnerable plants.

companion planting – by planting close together with species that attract predatory insects or disguise vulnerable plants, the impact on crop species can be reduced, as pests are less likely to find their food plants.

deterrents and barriers – many potential garden pests are sensitive to specific features. Slugs, for example, do not like copper piping or the sharp edges of eggshells, so surrounding plants with such materials may keep many species away. Other methods to keep pests away are plastic bottles and straw around the base of plants.

The key point to remember with pest control in gardens is that you are not trying to remove the pest completely, but to protect your plants and crops from serious damage. Most creatures that we see as pests are seen by our garden favourites as food, so encouraging more diversity within the garden will prove beneficial.

Find out what The Co-operative is doing to reduce its pesticide use

Source: www.rspb.org.uk (link opens in new window).

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