Learner Limbach of FoodMasters at the Liberty Garden in Eastsound with the honeybees that just flew into Eastosund
By Margie Doyle
Learner Limbach, founder of FoodMasters, led a group of about 15 people on Saturday afternoon, installing a population of honeybees in their hive in downtown Eastsound.
Last fall, Ulanah McCoy, a member of FoodMasters, contacted Ernie from Olympia who built the hives. On Saturday, just as the rains stopped, thousands of honeybees were flown into Eastound airport.
Learner looks into the hive window where the bees are surrounding their queen
A few hours later, they were buzzing around their Queen Beein the new hive at the north side of the Eastsound garden that occupies three lots between Shinola Jewelry and Tres Fabu clothing store.
Until they make their own honey, they are drawing sustenance from sugar syrup in the hive. The bees may swarm about garden visitors, but they’re looking to make honey, not to sting humans, so feel free to look in their hive window, and just step lightly!
i am wondering what is being done to promote local and native bumblebee and mason bee populations? bumblebees can forage 8 miles a day; twice as far as honeybees. both bumbles and masons are the earliest pollenators; much needed in late winter when things are first blooming. last year, the resident bumbles and other bees in my garden were driven out by aggressive honeybees from a nearby hive somewhere; it was distressing to witness, since i welcome the early pollenators.
this year, i have seen hardly a bumblebee and virtually no mason bees in my garden or in anyone else’s where i work… what’s going on with those populations? who might know?
i think we need to understand the role that all of our beneficial pollenators play, and do what we can to protect all of them, especially natives and the early pollenators, and help them increase their numbers. even though they don’t make honey, we still depend on them for ours and the ecosystems’ food chain. i would love to work with foodmasters or any other interested persons on this win-win goal.