Living next door to a large Almond orchard, we have a lot of tiny visitors in early spring each year. The almond trees require the assistance of bees for cross-pollination. The farmer usually contracts with pollination services to bring extra bee colonies. These bees, as I understand it, are typically Honey Bees. But Google states that Bumble Bees are the better choice for crop pollination. Who knew. This is something new for me to learn more about.
I’ve heard the stories about bees being in danger of extinction, but I didn’t know how to help. With the arrival of this year’s bees beginning and the way they were buzzing around Teddy’s pool, I began seriously thinking about this. I immediately realized that this was not a good situation for Teddy or the bees.
There are quite a few bees now, and I know the numbers will grow as more and more almond trees begin to flower! So before the bees became too fixed on Teddy’s pool, I had to find an alternative. I want Teddy to be safe in his pool, and I want to provide a safe place for the bees to drink water. Almost by accident, I found the answer. I had an old birdbath, and I filled it with water, and I am happy to say that the bees line the edges to drink the water. Hopefully, this will continue to be a win-win solution. I am not as worried about Teddy being stung, and I am helping the bees.
I refill the birdbath every morning before the bees become active, and I am happy with the current solution. I realize that I won’t be able to support thousands of bees, but I will keep you updated.