In a message dated 5/2/01 11:19:46 AM Eastern Daylight Time, [log in to unmask]
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<< FromTodd Fenton
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 >I live in a subdivision that has a gravel pit on both sides of it.....Two
 >inconsiderate bee keepers bring in semi-loads of hives in the spring and
 >for a few months we are covered with bees.... >>

   Who was there first?  Is this a rural area that built up?  It's hard to
believe the beekeepers are dumb enough to move into a populated area. More
likely they were there for years, and people moved in.

    Beekeepers are being pushed this way and that, along with other farmers,
by folks who move into their territory.  City folks move to the country
because they like the rural atmosphere, then they try to sanitize the rural
environment. When they find out that manure stinks and bees sting, they want
to harass and sue the farmer. After they drive the farmers and beekeepers out
of business, who will feed us?

   I had a prime bee yard at the end of a dead end road in an extremely rural
spot. It was the kind of bee yard beekeepers love, because you could drive
right into it after five inches of rain, and there was enough forage to
support a lot more hives than most yards.  A guy from the city moved a
doublewide across the road from the yard entrance, and I began to get calls.
Every time he saw a bee on his property (or a yellow jacket) he would call me
and threaten to poison the bees or sue me.

   Believe me, it's hard to find new locations.

   I love to work with the bees, and took great pride in being a major player
in your food supply. (If you got a sweet watermelon from South Carolina, the
farmer got bees from me!)   But I got burned out from dealing with the
pesticide misuse (that kills bees) and other human problems, including city
folks that move to the country and harass the farmers and beekeepers. This
spring I retired.

   There are only about 1400 full time beekeeper operations left in the USA,
and most are pretty discouraged. Who will replace these?  They are
responsible, thru pollination service, for much of the produce you see in
your supermarket.

   So which is it?  If you were there and the beekeeper moved in, he must be
a pretty stupid beekeeper, and probably deserves your harassment. If you
moved in, then you should put up and shut up, because he puts food on your
plate every day. I have looked into the eyes of starving children, and,
believe me, I don't want to see it happen in America.

   For more about the critical situation with pollinators, see The
Pollination Home Page:  http://pollinator.com

Dave Green     SC  USA