Getting buzzed about bees!

Bees can make a comeback with our help! Learn why bees are in decline and what you can do to help

World Bee Day has just passed on 20th May, celebrating the importance of protecting bees and other pollinators. Of all the pollinators, people love seeing bees – the friendlier furrier cousin of wasps! They include honeybees, bumblebees, and the many solitary bees too.

Bees are responsible for pollinating a third of the food we eat, and around eighty percent of flowers too. They’re so important that if they disappeared it could cost UK farmers up to £1.8bn a year to pollinate crops manually! They are also important in maintaining a healthy ecosystem and upholding biodiversity, as the plants they pollinate are then available as food for other invertebrates, allowing the food chain to continue.

Sadly, it’s now widely known that bee populations are in decline from pressures such as pesticides, habitat loss and climate change. As vegans, we’re not comfortable with any species suffering, and so we are encouraging everyone to take charge and help these important furry creatures yourself! Introducing little changes to your garden or nearby green space has a massive overall impact – especially if you empower more people to do this too.

On the Viva! Shop, we’re excited to be expanding our Nature & Gardening section, and this includes lots of products which help bees and other pollinators. Here’s a round-up of our two best items for bees – short and sweet for you!

For any tired bees that you come across, Beevive have offered the perfect quick fix. This Bee Revival Keyring contains an inner vial of sugar water solution, giving bees a burst of energy to get them back on their feet and onto the next flowers. Beevive advise that bees should first be moved onto a nearby plant for their safety, and then it should only take a few drops to help it to feel buzzed again! Once empty, simply refill with 50/50 white sugar and water, mix well and it’s ready to go! We now have the keyrings in both black and gold.

One way to improve and grow habitat for bees is to grow more wildflowers for them to forage nectar. These seedboms contain the best native plants for bees and other pollinators, and can be grown in your garden or sowed in your favourite green space! Alongside the seeds, the starchy compostable shell also contains organic compost to give your seeds the best start in life! Not only is it really rewarding to see the sprouts first emerging, eventually you will have a bounty of beautiful coloured flowers as a nice treat for you as well as the bees!

Both of these items also make great eco gifts for friends and family. They help nature and they’re plastic free too! Shop compassionately with the Viva Shop.

References:
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2018/07/why-are-bees-important-and…