The last few days have been great for window down driving.

Driving the country roads with the sun shining, but not blaring down with lots of heat, the leaves on the verge of changing, and the scent in the air that is quintessential of the change from summer to fall makes my soul happy. It also doesn’t hurt to have Taylor Swift’s super catchy and happiness inducing “Shake It Off” coming through the radio.

Maybe that’s just me…

However, thanks to my lower car windows and the time of year, I have found myself in the company of bees while in the drivers seat.

I am not afraid of bees because, basically living at the neighborhood pool as a kid, I have been stung enough to know it’s not a big deal. But, I can’t help but get a little jumpy when they get that close in a tight space.

Actually, I love bees.

Bee’s are awesome because they make my garden beautiful and full of produce.

Bees are actually a major part of the success of any garden as they are incredibly efficient pollinators.

While on the hunt for nectar, bees pick up pollen and transfer it to female plants as they fly from one flower to another making plants stronger.

But bees aren’t just important for backyard gardens; they play a vital role in our entire food system. One third of the food consumed across the planet relies on pollination from bees.

But, in recent years, the bee population has been on the decline and colonies have been collapsing. There is a debate to why the world is seeing fewer bees because there has not been any scientific evidence for one way or another.

Some experts claim environmental factors, like the destruction of bees natural habits, is to blame. Others wonder if the use of pesticides has effected them. There is talk about a parasite that bees may have contracted and some wonder about global warming or the state of our water.

All bad. But, a world without bees would be even worse.  A world without bees would lead to massive malnutrition and major economic hardships. Farmers and food corporations would lose their jobs and the cost of food would go way up.

One of the easiest ways to help bees help you in your vegetable garden is designate some garden beds for flowers.

 

But, not just any flowers.  The best flowers to plant to drive bees to your garden are wide, similar to a daisy shaped flowers.  This year I planted zinnia’s and dahlia’s and they have not only worked great, but also look really nice.

I planted a large amount of flower seeds in the garden bed designated for flowers because bees are creatures of habit and they will return to a high yielding and rewarding flower bed.  Our garden beds are eight feet by three feet and the bees have been loving it.  

Other things you can do to help bees in your area is promote your local bee keeper by purchasing his products or, something that is on my 5 year garden plan radar- start your own hive!