Data Shows Bee Populations Dwindling

Bee declines have been observed throughout recorded history, but the sudden, persistent and abnormally high annual hive losses had gotten so bad that the U.S. Department of Agriculture had commissioned two of the world’s most well-known entomologists — Dennis vanEngelsdorp, a chief apiary inspector in Pennsylvania, then studying at Penn State University, and Jeffrey Pettis, then working as a government scientist — to study the mysterious decline. They posited that there must be an underlying factor weakening bees’ immune system.

Read their findings here: https://theintercept.com/bees-insecticides

“Bees are the canary in the cornfield,” said Lisa Archer, from Friends of the Earth. “The science linking pesticides to the extinction crisis has grown.”

Tips & Tricks: Organic Farming Basics

Growing food organically blends the oldest methods of agriculture with recent advances in soil science and a deep understanding of ecology.