Bees provide essential functions vital to the survival of humans, plants, and animals. Their numbers are dropping dangerously low and many professionals and scientists are warning people to get proactive with protecting and saving the bees. If we are to save the bees, we need to know why they’re important, how they got to such low numbers and what we could do to help save their species, and subsequently other species too. Recently there has been a lot of buzzing around the notion that cannabis can help save the bees. Let’s buzz right into all of it.
Simply put, bees allow plants to reproduce through pollination. These plants are important to the food system. Those plants feed animals and humans, it also feeds and nourishes the animals we consume for meat. Bee pollination of plants also ensures that the survival of those plants continues.
If the numbers of bees reach depletion, there will be a huge disruption in our food chain which could lead to severe suffering. Yes, there are other pollinating insects, but bees are the worlds’ most important ones. One-third of our food relies on bee pollination alone.
Bees pollinate more than 100 types of crops and are also monumental in the pollination of grass that fee cattle. Without them, there would be less beef, milk, and cheese. Bees are also important for providing us with plants producing fruits, nuts, and vegetables.
Although these busy bees provide us with those contributions which are priceless, they also contribute 3-digit millions in revenue to the economy as a result of their hard work.
There are three main reasons that are responsible for the loss of population:
There have been two very exciting developments regarding bees and cannabis recently.
The reason this is so exciting is that the cannabis industry can provide the bees with a source of pollen to help alleviate their dying numbers while the industry receives a yummy new product, natural cannabinoid dosed honey.
A study has shown that the taller the cannabis plant, the more bees it is likely to attract. The study also showed that the more cannabis plants to cover ground, the more likely bees are to swarm the location.
Cornell University conducted a study that was published in Environmental Entomology in December. It found the same things as the study published by Colorado State University almost a year ago. They both confirmed that bees love cannabis… almost as much as we do.
The catch with this cool notion of cannabis saving bees is that the bees basically ignore female cannabis plants. Female cannabis plants are the ones we like to grow as they’re the ones we use for consumption. However, the male plants, which we keep in separate locations to our females most of the time, are highly attractive to bees due to its flowers and plentiful pollen sacks.
Basically, the male plants we keep around to breed our cannabis plants and seeds will allow the bees their accelerant to thrive as a species.
Imagine if growers with fields of cannabis allowed bees access to their male plants… we would have so many more bees as growers generally opt for less harmful but effective pesticides as cannabis is commonly used for consumption. I say bring on the cannabis and bee duet farms! As for the cannabis honey made from bees…Keep your eyes buzzing on our website for the article exploring honey made by bees that have consumed cannabinoids.
In 2018, former President Donald Trump signed the Farm Bill into law. The Farm Bill is the federal government’s primary agricultural and food policy instrument. Every five years, Congress deals with renewing and revising the comprehensive bill. Before 2018, cannabis was not part of the conversation around farm subsidies or crop insurance. With the passing…
Nobody wants to spend time with paranoid Pete, but if you don’t choose your cannabis strains wisely, you could get flung into a portal of paranoia yourself. Funnily enough, a recent Marist poll found that almost a third of cannabis users in the U.S. use marijuana to ease anxiety or stress. A separate Marist poll…
Alternative medicine is becoming more widely acknowledged and practiced than ever before, opening the door for therapies like psychedelics to enter the world of mainstream healthcare. One psychedelic that’s been getting a whole lot of attention lately is psilocybin, an active ingredient in mushroom species that are often called “magic mushrooms.” Psilocybin is a naturally…
Consuming alcohol heavily in young adulthood is associated with an increased likelihood of developing alcohol use disorder (AUD), the most widespread substance-related disorder worldwide. Research has already shed light on the effects of individual differences like alcohol sensitivity and cardiovascular responses in predicting binge drinking behaviors and progression to AUD. However, there remains a gap…
Despite being far from new, psychedelic therapy is an avenue of medicine that is gaining more traction these days. Many people believe that psychedelics such as MDMA and psilocybin could potentially help improve the mental health of people, especially veterans. Sadly, many of our veterans battle mental health issues and receive very little help from…
For those who suffer from muscle pain, chronic pain, or joint pain, cannabis topicals can be a game-changer. But how exactly do…
Oklahomans’ cannabis vote ended on a sour note, a Canadian dispensary is facing backlash over cocaine sales, and Arizona law students are…
Four U.S. states—Minnesota, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania—stand a good chance at legalizing recreational cannabis this year. There’s also a slim chance of…