How You Can ‘Bee’ A Hero

Bees are very busy, pollinating most of the world’s plants. They pollinate our food and give us honey, but unfortunately, the bees are dying.

It might not sound like much, that bees are dying, but bees are extremely important to life on Earth. If they were to go extinct, the world wouldn’t be able to live without them. There are a few ways to help keep the bee population alive, one of which is beekeeping. Not only does beekeeping help the bees, you get honey and beeswax out of it as well!

Beekeeping can be done in most spaces, like backyards or on your roof, if it is flat. If you have a larger lawn, you may want to keep the bees away from your house so they do not try to fly inside. There are guides online for backyard or rooftop beekeeping for those interested. Keep in mind that beekeeping is a year-round job, with fewer check-ins of the hive during the winter.

Beekeepers have several tools of the trade, including bee suits and bee smokers.

Bee suits are worn to cover any exposed skin, so you do not have to worry about getting stung. The bee smoker is another tool that is used to calm the bees so the beekeeper can safely check on the hives or harvest the honey. The rule of thumb is to not harvest too much, since the bees need food for winter.

Here are some tips if you are interested in beekeeping:

• Look up the best things for beginner beekeepers. 
• Do not impulsively buy bees without doing research on how to maintain a hive. 
• Make sure you have the right hives for the space you have available, and check with anyone you are living with to make sure it is ok to keep bees near them.
• Keep in mind that it is a terrible idea to keep bees near someone with a bee allergy.

What if beekeeping is not for you, but you still want to help the bees? A good way to help is to plant a flower garden with a variety of flowers. Most bees need many types of flowers instead of just one. Plus, you get a pretty garden out of this, as well as attracting butterflies and possibly hummingbirds! You can do this too, if you are planning to keep bees. Flowers are for everyone who wants them. Make sure no one around you has a severe pollen allergy before planting a bunch of flowers.