Bees

A dead Asian giant hornet has been found in Washington state, and officials said Friday they are trying to learn if the insects have established coloniesBy NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS Associated PressMay 29, 2020, 8:36 PM3 min readSPOKANE, Wash. -- A dead Asian giant hornet has been found in Washington state,…

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A dead Asian giant hornet has been found in Washington state, and officials said Friday they were trying to learn if the honey bee predators have established colonies here.The Washington state Department of Agriculture said it was the first confirmed sighting of an Asian giant hornet…

Well, here we are, enjoying our first pandemic. Most of us anyway. But even the flimsiest grasp of history informs us that bad times are a dime a dozen. The Universe is indeed infinite, and it has innumerable ways to stress us out, and when it isn’t, someone else is.…

Summer in the garden is all about maintenance, sustenance and pure enjoyment (assuming the first two are successful). Here are 10 things to do now to enhance your summer garden. Make sure your new pot has ample drainage 1. Rejuvenate your potsPull your root-bound plant out of its container and…

Shea yields are likely to benefit from a diversity of trees and shrubs in parkland habitats in West Africa, according to a new study led by scientists from Trinity College Dublin. The findings have important implications for managing a crop that is typically harvested and sold by women in rural…

1 INTRODUCTION An estimated 96% of flowering plants in the tropics benefit from animal‐mediated pollination (Ollerton, Winfree, & Tarrant, 2011). On a global scale, there is concern about decline of pollinating insects, particularly bees, although most evidence for pollinator decline comes from North America and Europe. Despite their cultural, nutritional and…

First published: 23 May 2020 Abstract Nectar scents are thought to function as honest signals of reward used by pollinators, but this hypothesis has rarely been tested. Using Penstemon digitalis , we examined honest signalling of the nectar volatile (S )‐(+)‐linalool and pollinator responses to linalool in both field and…

If bumblebees find too little pollen, they pierce the leaves of non-flowering plants in order to force them to produce flowers more quickly. Credit: Hannier Pulido / ETH Zurich When pollen is in short supply, bumblebees damage plant leaves in a way that accelerates flower production, as an ETH research…

I am responsible for my body and no one else. Not my friends, not my family, not my doctor. I was reminded of this when I broke my toe last week by clumsily jamming it against a doorframe. It was my mistake, and I’m paying for it. It was my…

The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development joins the world and in particular the horticultural community and beekeeping community in celebrating the World Bee Day today. It is important to acknowledge and recognise the role of honeybees in the agricultural sector and their benefit to humankind. As we…