The bee killer in your garden

03 June 2010

An investigation by the Soil Association has revealed chemicals lethal to bees can be found in domestic gardening products on sale in UK supermarkets, hardware stores and garden centres.

A group of insecticides called neonicotinoids have been linked to the  dramatic decline in honey bee numbers which have been seen in the past few years.

Neonicotinoids – first used in agriculture in the mid-1990s - have been banned or suspended in several European countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Slovenia.

As the UK Government has so far failed to act on this issue, the Soil Association is calling on the chief executives of B&Q, Wilkinsons and Wyevale, to withdraw any products containing neonicotinoid pesticides.

2010 is the UN’s International Year of Biodiversity so what better way to do your ‘one simple thing’ to preserve biodiversity - the life support systems we rely on – and boycott these products. A selection of products to avoid in your garden can be found here: www.soilassociation.org/bees.aspx

Gardeners can also play their part in helping bees by using organic gardening techniques, having a wide variety of plants and by not being too tidy - wild flowering plants are perfect food for bees and ivy is a particularly important source in the winter. Gardeners might also want to consider keeping bees if they’ve got the space. There are some excellent courses available as part of the Soil Association’s Organic Farm School programme, details available here: www.soilassociation.org/farmschool.aspx

Bee decline is a worldwide phenomenon – in the UK alone beekeepers reported an average loss of 17.7% in 2009/10. Although no single reason is responsible for this dramatic decline of these crucial pollinators, one of the major causes is linked to industrial-scale farming. This has meant a sharp decrease in areas of wild flowers and other bee-friendly sites, as well as the use of insecticides such as neonicotinoids. In contrast the UK Government’s own advisors found that plant, insect and bird life is up to 50% greater on organic farms.

Bees play a vital role in the food chain – it is estimated that one third of human food supplies depend on their pollination. The Soil Association has collected over 20,000 signatures in support of our campaign to suspend neonicotinoid pesticides which Monty Don, Soil Association president, will be sending to the new Government on 5 June, UN World Environment Day – which is this year focusing on protecting biodiversity.

Monty Don, Soil Association president, said:
“Every gardener and grower can play an active part in protecting our bee population by stopping the use of noxious chemicals now, and by encouraging a wider diversity of bee-friendly plants.”

Notes

[1] Take Action:

Here are just some of the ways that you can get involved in helping to protect honey bees:

• Avoid neonicotinoid based garden products and write to your local garden centre asking them to stock bee-friendly alternatives.
• Buy organic food and support sustainable farming techniques.
• Use organic techniques in your own garden. Use a wide variety of plants and don’t be too tidy. Leave wild flowering plants in place – ivy is a particularly important source of winter food for bees.
• Take up beekeeping if you’ve got the space. There are some excellent courses available as part of The Soil Association’s Organic Farm School programme, details of which are available at www.soilassociation.org/farmschool.aspx
• Write to your new MP asking them to put pressure on the Secretary of State at Defra to suspend the use of neonicotinoids, as France, Germany, Italy and Slovenia have already done.

[2] Latest bee statistics from the British Beekeepers’ Association