For gardeners and farmers, enlisting the help of bees, even wild bees, can have a large impact. A study in northern Alberta, for example, found that canola farmers who’d left one third of their land as unmanaged habitat within bee flight of their crop made more than double the profit of their counterparts who farmed 100 percent of the land.
That was what bee biologist Mark Winston told me about a year ago, when I was working on an article about pollination and wanted to know about wild bees. He had agreed to meet me for coffee and shared stories from his book Bee Time: Lessons From the Hive. Dedicated to “valuing nature,” the chapter he quoted from confirms that improved wild bee habitat can lead to increased yields for crops that require pollination.
I believe this and similar sentiments will resonate strongly with residents of Bowen Island, where Winston will read on Tuesday, February 3, at 8 p.m. at Rustique Bistro. A special dinner, starting at 6 p.m. will feature honey-inspired dishes, no reservations are required.
Winston’s book has been greeted with much enthusiasm, especially at a time when there’s a buzz about beekeeping, which has become both difficult and expensive due to the Colony Collapse Disorder that decimated managed honeybee colonies by one third annually since 2006. Winston, who presents his insights in accessible, well-written prose, doesn't only look at bees. He takes his knowledge from working with bees and beekeepers and applies it to the plight of humans.
"There are powerful lessons to be learned from bees about how we humans can better understand our place in nature, engage the people and events surrounding us with greater focus and clarity, interact more effectively in our relationships and communities, and open ourselves to a deeper understanding of who we are as individuals, communities and a species,” Winston says.
Bee Time: Lessons From the Hive will be available at the event, courtesy of Phoenix on Bowen.
