Photo: Natalie Miranda (used with permission)
Southern California got a ton of rain this winter and while that was great for our drought, we know it's caused other problems like potholes, flooding, and mudslides, and more things are coming, like an increase in mosquitos and possibly issues with crops because of too much water.
One of the other things that were affected were the bees, and if you don't already know this, the bees are VERY important to everything!
Because it was cold, wet and windy some hives were simply damaged or washed away, and for the ones that weren't the bees are taking a lot longer to come out of their hives to start gathering nectar and pollen. That meant their beekeepers had to spend more money on sugar syrup to feed their colonies to keep them alive so that they were ready to get out there and do their thing with the trees and flowers.
"Most commercial beekeepers send their bees to California early in the year to help pollinate its $5 billion-a-year almond crop, then move them elsewhere to pollinate commodities ranging from avocados to cherries or to the Midwest to produce honey."
With the delay in bees emerging from their hives, it means that the almond crop could be affected because the bees could not pollinate them in time for harvest, and California's almost crop accounts for about 80% of the world's almonds!
Experts say it's really too soon to tell how much the almond crop and other crops might be affected, but they're keeping an eye on it.
On the positive side, with the rain likely to bring a huge wildflower bloom, THAT would be a great thing for the honey industry.
We talked to Keith Roberts, owner of The Valley Hive in Chatsworth about all things bees this morning, check out that interview below!
Check out The Valley Hive Website
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Photo: The Valley Hive
Photo: The Valley Hive