Bees, HELP, Green Thumbs

[donluis99]

This year I have planted and am expanding my vivero or canucoo, I know there have been reports of less bees for the honey producers here as well as in the STATES.

All veggies, nortmal american garden stuff, years past have been very good, so that is why I am expanding, but NO HAY ABEJAS................

But I am not seeing any, any at all at any time of the day.

Which means I will have a very slim pickins, as pollinateing will be by chance or other insects or artificial, which I really can not do.

So, is there anyway to enhance the attaction so maybe beees that are further away will come.

By the way I am in central Santo Domingo.

[gary short]

My grandfather used to purchase Queen bees from Louisiana, and have them shipped to Canada in order to start hives that would pollinate apple and plum trees in his orchards.
The by product was of course honey..yum..

So can you set up your own hives????......might be the answer..

[Don Juan]

"By the way I am in central Santo Domingo."

Where would that be? The middle of la capital?

[Keith R]

Hmmm, I suspect he meant that his canuco is in central DR.

Yes, you could start your own beekeeping. From what I hear, the "organic" (whatever that means in the beekeeping context) beekeepers claim that their colonies have not been affected by the widely-reported (but still poorly understood) colony collapse syndrome. See Bee Die-offs from Multiple Causes » Celsias

[Chris]

Those bees that hang around organic farms and drink the juices of organic flowers. There is an excellent new book just released on natural beekeeping ..
Natural Beekeeping :: Chelsea Green Publishing

A friend had this book as a review copy and I got to read it before it hit the streets. The story goes that mites and pests were held in check chemically through the years, but now are building up a chemical resistence.

[donluis99]

Always a wide range of advice here, raising bees would bee great but my tomato plants & tomatillos are three feet high loaded with flowers for a couple weeks now, not one tomato or tomatillo.

Pepper plants have a few peppers developing, but those I believe are via other means, as there are hundreds of flowers but only a handful of peppers.

I need BEES now.

I know certain flowers and colors attract bees, but what flowers, Dominican Flowers have a high attraction to bees via scent.

If I could find some at a vivero alreay mature I could put several around that might help spread the word.

My error, not exactly in the center of the city, Arroyo Hondo area.

Have an answer that works NOW I will be happy to send you a nice veggie basket at the cosecha.

[2LeftFeet]

Butterflies are good too. They are drawn to specific flowers as are humming birds (I guess I'm pushing it with that one).

[Hillbilly]

Try to contact PIB via a PM on this board. Her family has thousands of hives. Maybe you can buy one/rent one??

Also, at the Feria Ganadera, I was told that they have bee hives there. You can check.

HB

[Chris]

Don't know if it will help, but there are several articles available on the internet to hand-pollinate tomatoes. Apparently (and I've never done it), you got to shake the plant around a little, or blow on it, or transfer the pollen with a brush from one flower to another - or pick a few flowers and pass them over the remaining flowers. You have to play 'bee'.

Don't know how many plants you have or whether this is an option.

[Chichiguita]

My sage plants draw all kinds of bees. You can hear the buzzing when you sit on the front porch. Don't know how well sage grows there, but you could try buying a couple of plants. Good luck.