Growing Wildflowers for Bees and Butterflies I am continually planting flowers for bees and pollinators. And continually looking for plants that bloom in August as that is the dearth time. Interesting article on planting wildflowers...I even convinced my neighboring farmer to plant about a quarter mile of roadside with wildflowers! Int that awesome of them?!!! CLICK HERE to read more.

Northeast Pollinator Plant List Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Recommended native plants that are highly attractive to pollinators such as native bees, honey bees, butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds.... CLICK HERE to read more...

Honeybee farmers facing 'desperate situation' as bee imports slow Canadian beekeepers buy thousands of packages of bees every year to replace hives that died over the winter, but this year those bees aren't getting into the country. What does this say if we need to import so many bees from across the sea? REALLY DRIVES HOME THE NEED TO DEVELOP THE ABILITY TO MAKE OUR OWN BEES AT HOME!. CLICK HERE to read on...

Hunt is on in Washington for giant, bee-killing hornet The Asian giant hornet, the world’s largest hornet and an invasive species first documented in the state late last year, can attack and kill a honeybee colony in a few hours. The state Department of Agriculture confirmed the first two sightings of the predator in December, and reported two unconfirmed but probable sightings. All of the sightings were in Whatcom County. The insect has also been documented in British Columbia. CLICK HERE to read on...

Honey Bee Microbiome Bacteria Engineered to Protect against Pathogens and Pests Scientists at The University of Texas at Austin have harnessed specially engineered symbiotic honey bee gut bacteria to protect the insects from Varroa mites and deformed wing virus, two key honey bee pathogens that represent major causes of colony collapse. The engineered bacteria live as part of the the honeybee gut microbiome, and effectively act as biological factories that produce double stranded RNA (dsRNA) to alter gene expression and trigger immune responses. The researchers believe their approach could feasibly be scaled up for agricultural use, because the engineered bacteria are easy to grow, inoculating the bees is straightforward, and the engineered bacteria are unlikely to spread beyond bees. CLICK HERE to read on...

Honeybees dying from "deformed wing virus," research finds University researchers found a key link between a common bee virus and colony decline. CLICK HERE to view video...