Where Are the Bees?
Local fruit farmer worries about decline
By Anne Marie Kyzer annemariek@thetruecitizen.com

The buzz of honeybees hard at work is music to Dick Byne's ears.

The blueberry farmer depends on hundreds of the busy insects to pollinate his 13-acre farm each spring.

But this year, the volume has been turned down on his favorite song.

A decline in the number of honeybees has caused Byne to worry about this year's crop.

"I need eight on each bush to get good pollination," he said, recalling the tallies he keeps of the bees feeding on his blooms. "Some days I only had two."

Byne anticipated the drop after he lost the last of the honeybee hives on his farm early this spring. The hives were planted there to help with pollination, a practice common among fruit farmers.

"One day I went out there and the hives were empty ... the bees were just gone," Byne said, describing what is commonly referred to as colony collapse.

Byne isn't the only one in Georgia missing his honeybees. According to fruit specialist Gerard Krewer of the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service, the problem has been plaguing fruit producers statewide for several years.

"We used to have tons of ferrel honey bees in Georgia, but that's not the case now," Krewer said.

Waynesboro beekeeper Edwin Stephens, said problems are plaguing domestic bees as well. The beekeeper lost two of his three hives over the winter months.

UGA entomologist Keith Delaplane said the decrease can be blamed mostly on parasites and disease and has worsened over the past couple for years.

He added that even though some residents have reported seeing hives develop almost overnight in their yards recently, it's only because this is the peak season for colonies to split and form new hives.

"There is often the impression that there is a burst in population, but that's not the case," he said.

With the decline of the honeybee, local fruit producers are depending on bumblebees, fewer in number but often more powerful pollinators.

For growers like George Browder, who tends about three acres of blueberries in eastern Burke County, the bumblebees will do the job just fine.

"I have bumblebees everywhere," he said. "The only thing I need is rain to have a good crop."

Watermelon grower Fred Chambers said he is also hoping bumblebees will make up for the recent loss of a honeybee hive on his twoacre patch.

But for large growers like Byne, who tends some 9,000 bushes and depends on his berries for his livelihood, good fruit set has to be guaranteed.

According to Krewer, the flowers on those bushes need to be pollinated within six days of bloom.

While Byne values the bumblebees on his farm, he's not sure there were enough to get the job done. And, unlike honeybees, additional bumblebees cannot be introduced to an area.

So, Byne applied a hormone called gibberellic acid, which causes fruit cells to begin growing, helping to ensure sufficient fruit set. Many fruit producers use the hormone, which is produced naturally by seeds in smaller amounts, to aid germination, mitigate damage after frost or promote growth.

While Krewer said the gibberellic acid can be a helpful tool, nothing replaces the berries produced by pollen activity. The berries produced when producers add extra amounts of the hormone are often small and late.

"A producer like Dick would prefer to have them well-pollinated to get a nice, big, early-ripening berry," Krewer said.

While Byne feels like this year's crop holds plenty of hope,

he's still banking on getting more honeybees for next spring.

If nothing else, having plenty of bees will give

him one less worry as a farmer.

WHY BUZZ ABOUT BEES?

"The whole concern about honeybee population is not about honey, it's about pollination."

- Dr. Keith Delaplane, UGA entomologist

About 1/3 of the food supply is affected by honeybee pollination.

Bee pollination provides $15 billion in added crop value, especially for specialty crops like almonds and other nuts, berries, fruits and vegetables.

Source: USDA Agricultural Research Service