[log in to unmask] (Gordon D. Hayes)  says:
 
>I might add that I could have rented to a migrant grower the other day. But
I did not because of his insistance on using pesticides.
 
  It sounds like there is more story here, so this may not apply, but I do
want to comment in general on the above sentence.
 
  Many beekeepers are extremely hostile to pesticides.  After having been
burnt many times by their misuse, we don't always understand that it is
MIS-use,  not use that hurts the bees.  So some beekeepers try to demand that
growers not use pesticides.
 
  That is no more fair, than the grower who insists that WE *protect* the
bees.  The grower's livelihood is at stake when pests get to munching, so he
must spray.  We cannot stop him and have no right to try.  But we can insist
that he use the pesticide properly, as required by law.
 
   Let me explain what I mean by *required by law.*  Each pesticide is
different, acting in different manner.  Some kill on contact, some are
stomach poisons, some are slow acting, leaving long lasting residues, others
are only active for minutes, killing quickly, but then dissapating or
breaking down.  Because each is different, each has different hazards.  The
testing and legalization process for a pesticide is a long process, which
establishes the hazards of use, and a specific label is designed for each
material.
 
   Beekeepers are only in danger from those which have bee protection instruct
ions on the label.  This eliminates worry over weed killers, fungicides,
growth regulators, etc. Only insecticides have bee label directions, and then
only those which have demonstrated a hazard.
 
   It is misuse of a pesticide to use it in violation of directions.
Therefore the law is actually a bit different for each material.
 
   Many materials direct not to apply when bees are foraging in the
application area.  It is the bee as she forages that is in danger.  You are
very unlikely to have any damage because a plane sprayed your hives; in fact
the pesticide laws do not protect the hive, though other laws, will, of
course.
 
    What is your concern, and should be the grower's, is when the bee is
foraging in the application area.  If there is no bloom in that area, the dire
ctions do not apply, because bees will not be foraging.
A tobacco grower called me once and was real upset; said he had to spray his
tobacco (aerial), and I had bees in the woods beside the field.  I asked him
if there was bloom in the tobacco.
 
   He said. "Of course not!  We HAVE to top the tobacco."
 
   I replied: " Well, if there's no bloom, the bees cannot be foraging there,
so don't worry about it."  No damage was sustained.  The chemical was
Orthene, which does have bee directions, but they didn't apply, with no bees
foraging.
 
   Sometimes there is no bloom in the crop to be sprayed, but there are
weeds.  We've been hit from mustard in wheat, goldenrod in corn, and clover
in orchards.  In each case it was a violation, as bees were foraging.  It
doesn't matter if it is the crop, or if it is weeds; the key is, are bees
foraging.
 
   We need to teach applicators how to tell when bees are foraging.
Monitor hives are a good tool, and I have made offers for years to provide
free monitor hives for applicators.
 
   It is even more so,  the job of extension to teach applicators when bees
will be foraging.  Our SC extension continues to tell growers to notify
beekeepers, (so they can circumvent compliance with label directions), and it
may take legal action to get them up to date.  None of the bee protection
advice mentioned in our extension materials even mentions the label
directions which have to be obeyed. Every time they tell growers they can
demand that I "protect" the bees they are putting me in an impossible
situation, and they are seizing my property - a violation of the 5th
ammendment.
 
   The next generation will need bees. My hives aren't usually killed
outright, but the profit is gone to salvage costs.  I told our state bee man,
that his resolute action on this could make him a hero to the next
generation.
 
   One of our vector control (mosquito) county directors just sent me a
certified letter demanding that I give him all my locations, so he could
notify me when they are going to spray. He has by this means, declared his
intention to use the material without regard to label directions, as I told
him they would be sufficiently protected if he followed them.  He also has
declared his intent to ignore the directions for all bees which do not have a
human defender.  I see a criminal case here - wilful misuse is a criminal
offense.
 
   I decline to participate in a scheme to avoid compliance with label directi
ons, that would mean I am in complicity. I will offer him a monitor hive free
of charge.  If he delines, then it is time for a Neighborhood Watch, and
bringing of charges.
 
   I have a flow chart, which I will send on to anyone for SASE.  This is a
compilation of bee protection methods, based on label directions. It is not
legal advice; it is common sense reading of the clear directions; and any
idiot could do it.  In one state, extension published a copy of it. I wish
they all would.
 
   We must always be clear in all our dealings that we are talking about
misuse, not use of pesticides.  We understand the necessary role of
pesticides in agriculture, beekeepers have to have them, too.  But we also
must bring to justice those who misuse them, or the problem will never stop.
 
[log in to unmask]
Dave Green
Dave's Pollination Service    &    Eastern Pollinator Newsletter
PO Box 1215, Hemingway, SC   29554