Beekeepers want you to help bees during Pollinators Awareness Week

As temperatures warm up, beekeepers in southeast Colorado are asking people to help pollinators do their job this summer.

“They’re a huge part of the ecosystem and the pollination process of plants,” said Lazarus Fields, who is a beekeeper and the owner of Fields of Natural Honey.

Fields says people would starve without pollinators. Researchers seem to concur, given that one in every three bites of food you eat most likely use the help of a pollinator.

Fields has been in the game for more than a decade and runs about nine different hive colonies throughout the southeast region. Many of the colonies he runs are located in the backyards of homeowners who want the bees near their gardens.

“It’s fun,” he said. “Every day is something new.”

However, Fields says he has lately seen some of the colonies collapsing and the bees fleeing their hive.

“They get disoriented and confused from the chemicals that are used to kill weeds and insects,” said Angela Katava, who is one of the homeowners that keeps bees in her backyard.

Katava said pesticides weaken the bees’ nervous system, making it easier for mites to kill them and spread throughout the colony.

Fields said he wishes people would avoid strong pesticide and insecticides like Roundup. Instead, people can let weeds like yarrow and dandelions grow in the summer to attract bees.

“Having a bee-friendly space in your yard,” Fields said. “That’s one of the easiest thing we can do as humans to help with the pollination.”

Katava said she also has a small fountain of water for bees and insects to drink from.

“Since the hives have been here my garden does extremely well,” Katava said with a smile.