About

About this blog:

When I heard that my sister Mary Beth was going to become a beekeeper, I knew that it was the perfect subject for a blog. The bees will be a great addition to her beyond-beautiful garden on Block Island, boosting pollination of the plants and providing us with delicious honey. And she will be doing something good for the bees (and the planet) by helping to ensure their survival.

Bees and beekeepers all over the world are being affected by Colony Collapse Disorder, a scary phenomenon that results in entire hives of bees simply disappearing without a trace. There are lots of theories about why this is happening, but right now the truth is that no one knows why. In the U.S. alone more than one-third of bees have disappeared over the past couple of years.

In the worst-case scenario, there won’t be any bees left to pollinate the 100 most important crops in our country, or about one third of U.S. crop species such as apples, pears, peaches, berries, melons, and almonds. Without bees to pollinate their flowers, there will be no fruits, no vegetables, no nuts.

The stakes are very high and this makes every beehive precious and important. The more backyard beekeepers there are, the less likely it will be that CCD will wipe out all the bees.

Beekeeping is an exciting endeavor, but for a newbie it can be confusing and, sometimes overwhelming. So we thought that this was the perfect opportunity to report what it’s like to start beekeeping from scratch — to give you a ringside seat to the process from the very beginning. As we talked about it, we decided that we wouldn’t pull any punches. Whether we succeed or fail, we’ll tell you the unvarnished truth.

But what about the rest of us who for one reason or another can’t have a beehive in our yards? What could we do to ensure the health of the local bee population? That’s where Barbara with her zero-lot-line, suburban-California garden comes into the picture. We’re going to report on her experiences as she transforms her yard into a bee-friendly habitat.

So we are now part of the solution. We’ll be doing all of this in the most earth-friendly, creature-friendly, organic, and sustainable manner possible. And we invite you to follow along.

Bee well,
Barbara & Mary Beth

“If you’re after getting the honey then you don’t go killing all the bees.”

Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros, “Johnny Appleseed”

About the authors:
Mary Beth: I’m a Colorado Master Gardener. Gardening and all things related have been my defining passion for many years. If I’m not working in someone else’s garden, you’ll find me in ours. I am forever in pursuit of garden bliss. I’ve found it my garden just outside of Durango, Colorado and in my family’s garden on Block Island, Rhode Island. When I’m not in Garden Nirvana (unimaginable!), I’m supporting my husband Ray’s sugar addiction by baking some sweet treats or entertaining my two dogs. Adding bees and chickens to the garden will be a dream come true and it has already open my eyes to a new world of wonder.

Barbara: I learned my first gardening lessons as a small child at my grandfather’s knee and my education continued as I worked alongside my father in our Block Island garden. My latest teacher is my youngest sister Mary Beth, who has taken this garden to a whole new level of beauty. Having been spoiled by the fertile soil of past gardens in Rhode Island and Pennsylvania, my Southern California garden has challenged me with its dry climate, clay soil, bugs, and plant failures. Yet through it all, the sun on my face and the smell of freshly turned earth never fail to make me feel that all is right with the world.

P.S. Here’s an email address if you’d like to contact either one of us: barbara@beesandchicks.com

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