A bug my girls will NOT EAT !!

[Portia]

Interesting aside: Earthworms aren't native here, either.

Neither are dandelions!​

 

[patandchickens]

Actually there *aren't* actually many other natural pollinators out there for most non wind pollinated crops -- native bees have taken a major nosedive in numbers over the years, and besides many agricultural crops are not pollinated "naturally" but rather by beekeepers driving all over the country hauling hundreds and hundreds of hive from blooming crop field to blooming crop field. So despite their being nonnative, much of what we eat (etc) these days depends on honeybees - specifically - and would be in big trouble if honeybee numbers continue to decline rather than getting over whatever the problem is.

jmk3482, for what it's worth my chickens LOVE tomato hornworms, they fight over them like little beaky dinosaurs. You do NOT wanna get between one of the girls and a tomato hornworm!

Pat

 

[jmk3482]

Quote:

haha!

That's why I thought it was so strange that they wouldn't eat it! I'd love to see my girls fight over a big hornworm! I love watching them scratch around after a rain looking for earthworms and then fight over the ones they find!

 

[Oblio13]

Quote:
We have a fairly extensive vegetable garden and quite a few fruit trees and bushes. Apples, peaches, persimmons, blueberries, paw paws, plums, cherries, raspberries, walnuts, gooseberries, currants, etc. I've literally not seen a honeybee here in years, but we seem to have no pollination problems. I think it's mainly the huge monocultures that require artificial help.

 

[LisaJean]

Quote:
I love currants! Sadly, the state of NC has a ban on growing them here. I think it has to do with a disease that currants can carry, or something.

 

[patandchickens]

Sure, there are regional differences. But in many places there *has been* a serious decline in native bees, affecting pollination, and it entirely remains to be seen whether or not they would bounce back and compensate for 'missing' honeybees.

And large crops often pretty much require trucked-in hives; there really is no possible substitute other than to totally change how those crops are grown (to older-style, lower yield methods). That may not have much of a direct effect on people who raise most of their own fruit and vegetables but let's face it that isn't how most people DO get their food. At best, loss of the ability to have honeybees out there pollinating commercial crops would require a serious restructuring of what foods people eat and how much they pay for them. (which maybe is overdue, but is not going to be enjoyed if it comes about).

The best thing, of course, would be for people to get a handle on what's up with the bee colony collapse thing.

Pat

 

[Oblio13]

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So does New Hampshire

White Pine Blister Rust is the disease you're talking about, but after the government outlawed gooseberries and currants, scientists discovered that they weren't really the threat they had originally thought.

One of the projects that kept the WPA and CCC workers busy during the depression was eradicating them. The federal government and most states have now repealed the ban, but most people are no longer familiar with ribes, so there are a few hold-outs that haven't gathered the momentum to repeal theirs.

Oblio family lore: My grandmother had a farm in Greensboro, NC. When the WPA came to her house to tear out hers, she told them to leave and never come back. Amazingly, they listened to her. Probably because she was holding a shotgun.

 

[ncgnance]

Quote:
That sounds a bit drastic to me. Yes, honey bees are declining. There are several reasons, including a tiny mite that kills them. I've personally seen a few fall out of the sky in the past 4 or 5 years. But there are many, many other natural pollinators, especially wasps and other bees. And I still have plenty of honey bees visiting my farm every year. Yes, it is amazing, but that's the beauty of nature, that life DOES depend on the little things. It all fits together....beautifully..

 

[Frosty]

The colony collapse disorder affected a lot of areas in a lot of countries, but there are a lot of places with no problems. And if you do a bit of reasearch on CCD, you will find that it has happened numerous times in the past (even wikipedia will tell you that it happened as early as 1896). North Dakota is a major honey producing state, and bees from up here are transported for pollination. So far there are no reports of CCD in the state. I think some of it is actually part of a naturally recurring cycle.

 

[LisaJean]

Quote:
Heehee. I just had a funny image of the news vans parked outside my house, covering the story of an illegal growing lab, and the cops coming out of my house with hydroponics, grow lights, and... currants.

See, several houses on my street have been raided in the past few years for growing pot and cubensis (shrooms).