Creating a buzz to plant trees for bees

Bee a hero and plant trees for bees. That will be the message to rural and urban Nelsonians at a Trees for Bees expo this weekend at the Nelson A&P Show.

To put a buzz into the display, Nelson Honey Centre beekeeper Phil Cropp will open a hive hourly so visitors can see honey bees.

The expo will also have trees from Richmond's Vibrant Earth Nurseries to show what types honey bees like.

Federated Farmers, which is encouraging farmers to plant bee-friendly trees, has teamed up with Landcare Research to produce a helpful plant guide aimed at saving honey bees.

The Trees for Bees guide has a regional list of trees and shrubs suitable for Nelson, their height and when they flower. It includes 24 native plants and 10 non-natives.

The Trees for Bees campaign was launched at the Royal New Zealand Show in Christchurch on November 11 when Landcare research scientist Linda Newstrom-Lloyd talked about the need to provide diverse and nutritious pollen and nectar sources for bees. Dr Newstrom-Lloyd, who will be at the Nelson show on Saturday, said the guide aimed to stop the bee population from declining further.

In Nelson, former commercial beekeeper Rae Butler has organised this weekend's bee expo. She is passionate about bees and was secretary of the Canterbury Beekeeping Association when it organised one of the first expos at the Malvern A&P Show to educate farmers and the public on the importance of honeybees for pollination.

"It has been perfectly timed with the launch of the Trees for Bees project," she said of the Nelson bee expo.

Federated Farmers bees spokesman John Hartnell said Federated Farmers wanted to encourage all New Zealanders to plant trees that would help honey bees. "With low bee numbers throughout New Zealand, farmers in particular must do their bit by planting trees and shrubs that provide a continual supply of floral nutrition. This is very important if we are to safeguard our bees from the threat of introduced pests, viruses and damaging organisms like varroa mite and the israeli paralysis virus.

"Bees directly contribute about $3 billion to our GDP through crop pollination and provide one-third of the calories New Zealanders consume. Add that to the clover pollination of grassland farming as well as our export meat industry and the value of bees balloons fivefold."

Nelson A&P Show, tomorrow and Sunday, Richmond Park Showgrounds.