Frequenty Asked Questions
A representative from The Co-operative’s Plan Bee team has answered questions about bees and Plan Bee:
What is Colony Collapse Disorder?
Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a term that is used to describe the mass die off of bee colonies in the USA. It is used to describe losses where no singular factor can be found as the cause of the loss of the colony. Hives with CCD show a similar collection of symptoms such as worker bees abandoning the hive and lack of attack by predators such as wasps.
What is causing so many bees to die?
In reality no one knows for sure the cause of the recent loses, pests such as varroa, poor weather, pesticides, importing of non native bees and even mobile phones have been blamed.
How can I encourage bees to my garden?
To encourage bees to your garden plant wildflowers to provide a source of nectar and pollen and leave a patch of grass to grow long so that bees can shelter from the rain.
How do I become a beekeeper?
There are 40,000 beekeepers in the UK, the majority of which keep bees as a hobby rather than as a career so its easier than you think to become an amateur beekeeper, especially is you join a local beekeeping association.
Where else can I go for info on bees?
There are many organisations who do good work around bees, here are a few:
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