Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth. Do you know the complete benefits?!?!

[Acre of Blessings]

IN THE AREA GUMPSGIRL AND I LIVE IN,SPATCHER TOO, NO ONE SELLS THA FOOD GRADE DE BUT SPATCHER OR WE ORDER IT ONLINE.

 

[tinman9952]

thechickcrew wrote: COME ON NOW, I HAVE NOT HEARD ANYTHING ON THE NEWS LATELY ABOUT HONEY BEES BEING ON THE ENDANGERED LIST. Where have you been? A Cornell University study has estimated that honeybees annually pollinate more than $14 billion worth of seeds and crops in the United States, mostly fruits, vegetables and nuts. “Every third bite we consume in our diet is dependent on a honeybee to pollinate that food,” said Zac Browning, vice president of the American Beekeeping Federation.

The bee losses are ranging from 30 to 60 percent on the West Coast, with some beekeepers on the East Coast and in Texas reporting losses of more than 70 percent; beekeepers consider a loss of up to 20 percent in the offseason to be normal.

Colony Collapse Disorder is a major problem!

 

[spatcher]

Within the last 5 years I have become deathly allergic to honey bees. I carry an "epi-pen" everywhere I go in the summer. I truly believe that we cannot exist without the bees pollinating what they do. However, as far as my use of DE is concerned, its to "bee" or not to "bee"! Can you guess my choice? lol Funny thing is I am not allergic to wasp, hornet or yellow jacket stings!

 

[Acre of Blessings]

Well i don't think that bees are the only pollinators. There are other critters that fly like birds and bats that pollinate.

And I understand that bees are a mian pollinator but honey bees aren't the only bees. And
I don't watch much tv, its not good for the enviroment.

Sorry gumpsgirl it looks like the bees have

 

[Reinbeau]

Quote:
Bees are not the only pollinators, but they are the main pollinators for over a third of our food. But it's not just honeybees that are in trouble, all of the pollinators are having problems, mostly due to agricultural chemical use. I haven't, however, heard of anything being threatened by the use of food-grade DE (including honeybees).

 

[spatcher]

I truly believe the benefits of DE certainly outweigh the bad. If you are concerned about its use around bees, the solution is simple, dont use it. I read where it is good for gardens in that it retains and releases moisture when needed, like the little beads you buy that are so expensive. True, it might kill some beneficial bugs, but it could be used on indoor houseplants where you wouldnt want bugs anyway! If you are not concerned about the bugs in the garden, rake it into the soil after the "pollinators" have been through!

 

[countryatheart]

On the honeybee worry, I don't think honeybees are going to be in my chicken coop. Idon't use it around flowering plants.
I found my food grade DE at a Nursery that specializes in organic gardening

 

[spatcher]

If anyone needs DE and cant get it, please PM me. 3,5 and 8# amts available. I sell PermaGuard Codex Food Grade DE - FDA Approved! 2-3 day delivery, shipping included!

 

[greyfields]

DE as control of external parasites?

DE given as feed to battle internal parasites? Bogus.

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

I have done extensive reading on honey bees and all credible sites say that you need to just not put the DE directly on flowers that the bees would pollinate. Doing so would harm the individual bee that came to that flower. Dusting it around stuff that they will not gather is of no harm to them, they have tested this. Pouring it directly into the hive (as someone did to try and get rid of the mites) is of course very very bad.