I told my husband that I need a t-shirt that says “I brake for bees” but probably more appropriate would be a bumper sticker pasted on the back of our riding lawn tractor.
This may be something only another beekeeper can understand, and even among beekeepers I might be in the minority. It wasn’t something that I thought about before I realized I was doing it, but as I mow the lawn at the farm I often see honey bees foraging on the dandelion or clover blossoms. My natural reaction is to yield them the right of way. Of course having wrote the check to purchase packages of bees, along with reaping the rewards of their labors, I have a great understanding of their value. Now it may or may not be the case that they will move out of the way of the mower just like the chickens and dogs move out of the way of vehicles at the last minute, but I am just not certain.
Few other creatures get this kind of consideration but among them are frogs, toads and snakes.
This past summer, my husband, who is totally on the same page with me as he has been known to get off the mower and move a toad to a safe place before continuing to mow, and I decided to restrict our mowing to the later evening hours after the bees were mostly back to the hive. It may be crazy, but I consider this a small sacrifice to help keep our hives healthy and strong.
I totally “get” this Ruth … I’ll be driving down the street and a sparrow darts in front of the car and I worry I can’t stop on time.
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I think it’s just about slowing down and paying attention instead of rushing through everything. Accidents will still happen but at least we will know we did our best.
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You’ve got that right. Yes, sometimes I’m walking down the street and suddenly a squirrel will dash across, pause in the middle of the street, then run back the other way. I have to turn away … most of them make it (thankfully).
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Reblogged this on Don't Eat It! Soap and Skin Care and commented:
We have had several days of rain this past week 🙂 and have been able to stop watering and work on weed pulling and lawn mowing. As I was mowing yesterday evening I was reminded of this post from 2016. Thanks for reading and have a great day!
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