Those attending the California Center for Urban Horticulture (CCUH) public workshop  on "Your Sustainable Backyard: Pollinator Gardening" on Saturday, April 28 at the University of California, Davis, will, no doubt, leave with a better understanding of how we can all do our part to support healthy bee communities.

That's because entomologists, horticulturalists and design experts will be among the speakers. The event takes place in Room 101 of Giedt Hall.

"The workshop is designed both to inspire gardeners and equip them with all the necessary tools to provision pollinating insects in their own landscape," said workshop coordinator Melissa "Missy" Gable, program manager of CCUH. "Without the pollination services of European honey bees and native bees, what fruits and vegetables would be accessible to us?"

The UC Davis speaker line-up includes pollinator specialist Robbin Thorp, emeritus professor of entomology, who will discuss "Bees 101: Species Diversity and Behavior";   pollination ecologist Neal Williams, assistant professor of entomology, "Importance of Pollinators and Conservation"; and Ellen Zagory, director of horticulture at the UC Davis Arboretum, who will cover "Bee Plants."

Vicki Wojcik, associate program manager of Pollinator Partnership will speak on "Pollinator Gardening: Design and Maintenance." 

Welcoming the participants will be Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology and professor of entomology at UC Davis, and Dave Fujino, executive director of CCHU.

This workshop will end with something special--actually two things special: (1) a visit to the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, a half-acre bee friendly garden next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road, and (2) a visit to the UC Davis Arboretum Teaching Nursery on Garrod Drive to see the pollinator demonstration beds and an opportunity to buy plants at a specially held sale inside the nursery.

The  $45 registration includes parking, morning coffee/tea, scones and a gourmet boxed lunch. See registration site.

Honey! 

Today at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at the University of California, Davis, we borrowed a plastic spoon and offered a taste of honey to newly emerged honey bees.

It was their sisters' making and now it was theirs. And soon, they will be making their own.

Norman Gary, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis and author of the newly published book, Honey Bee Hobbyist, the Care and Keeping of Bees, writes that "When all conditions are ideal (good weather, long days, intense nectar secretion and very populous colonies), bees can collect enormous quantities of nectar--perhaps around 6 pounds or more in one day--yielding around 2 to 3 pounds of honey per day."

Still, we often hear folks complain about humans stealing honey from the hives.

"Bees consume most of the honey they make," writes Gary, who has kept bees for more than six decades and continues his work as a professional bee wrangler. "Honey is primarily food for them and secondarily a treat for us because they produce more than the require for sustenance, which is 200 pounds per colony annually. The extra honey--anything over 200 pounds--is known as 'surplus' honey because it can be harvested without jeopardizing colony survival."

However, hobby beekeepers usually expect to produce around 100 pounds of honey per hive, he says.

That's definitely more than just a taste of honey!

At the entrance, the recent California Agriculture Day celebration on the west lawn of the State Capitol looked like the land of milk and honey.

The first booth, operated by the Dairy Council of California, handed out milk. The second booth, operated by the California State Beekeepers' Association (CSBA), shared honey.

"They go together," said Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, who helped staff the beekeepers' booth with CSBA president Bryan Ashurst and cousin Brock Ashurst of the Westmorland area (Imperial County) and their families; secretary-treasurer Carlen Jupe of Salida; and CSBA members Bill Cervenka of Half Moon Bay and Kathy Kellison of Santa Rosa. Kellison serves as the executive director of Partners for Sustainable Pollination.

The beekeepers know royalty when they see one (queen bee) and the Dairy Council knows a princess when it sees one. Dairy Princess Kayla Withrow of Wilton helped hand out milk and chocolate-flavored milk, while the beekeepers handed out blackberry, blueberry, citrus, clover and yellow starthistle Honeystix (honey-filled straws). A special treat at the beekeepers' booth was Häagen-Dazs ice cream, compliments of the premier ice cream brand which supports bee research at UC Davis.

The annual Ag Day recognizes California’s agricultural community by showcasing the scores of commodities that are produced in the state, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA).  Held this year on Wednesday, March 21, it was also a day for agriculturists to show their appreciation by "bringing together state legislators, government leaders and the public for a half day of agricultural education and treats," said CDFA spokesperson Steve Lyle.

Said one woman visiting the beekeepers' booth: "The Häagen-Dazs ice cream is what I come for every year."

For that, she can thank the bees. And for the generous donation of ice cream, she can thank Häagen-Dazs.

After all, without honey bees and their pollination of fruits, vegetables and nuts, half of the ice cream brand's flavors would cease to exist.

Indeed, the declining bee population troubled hundreds of visitors stopping by the beekeepers' booth. The most frequently asked question: "How are the bees?" 

Still declining. The mysterious colony collapse disorder (CCD) is still a mystery, but the suspected culprits are a combination of factors, including pests, parasites, pesticides, diseases, malnutrition and stress.

Bee swarms are absolutely fascinating.

Several years ago, when bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey was teaching a queen- rearing class at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis, her students received an extra bonus: they witnessed a bee swarm.

Right in front of them, as if on cue, the bees left the entrance of a hive and clustered on a nearby tree branch. That was Lesson No. 1. Cobey and crew quickly captured them and moved the swarm to a vacant hive. That was Lesson No. 2.

Actually, bee swarms aren't that rare on the UC Davis campus. They're just difficult to see because we're usually looking down instead of up.

This week UC Davis employee Suzan Carson alerted us to a bee swarm in the North Hall/Dutton Hall complex. She pointed to a tree branch, about 30 feet off the ground, where, in the deepening shadows, a cluster hung like grapes.  "Good eye!" we said.

Today, toting my telephoto lens, I returned to capture an image of the cluster. They were still there, but probably won't be for long. The pending rainstorm may drive them from their temporary home, observed Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology.

Norman Gary, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis, explains the ins and outs of swarms in his newly published book, Honey Bee Hobbyist: The Care and Keeping of Bees.

"The act of swarming is perhaps the most dramatic event in the lives of honey bees," Gary  writes. "Here's how it happens: Egg production increases dramatically in response to  warming spring weather as well as an abundance of pollen and nectar from spring flowers. Within a few weeks, the colony population essentially doubles. Multiple queen cells--usually at least six--are constructed in the brood nest. A few days prior to the emergence of a virgin queen, the old queen's ovaries begin to shrink. Egg-laying essentially stops, and she loses enough weight to permit flight for the first time since her mating flight."

So basically there's "no room in the inn" for the burgeoning population. The colony divides. The swarm usually heads for a nearby tree to cluster on a branch while the scouts search for a new--and appropriate--home. 

Meanwhile, back at the old hive, new queens are emerging and what happens next isn't pretty. "Rival queens engage in fierce stinging attacks until only one virgin queen remains," Gary writes.

About a week later, the victorious queen will depart on her mating flight to a drone congregation area, mate with 12 to 25 or so drones, and then return to the hive to lay eggs--as many as 2000 a day during the peak season.

The queen will never leave the hive again...

Unless, on a warm spring day...