We all love bees – or rather – we should all love bees.
The little insects provide the backbone of any gardener's greenery and keep our farmland pollinated so it can produce lovely crops, as well as fruit and veg on our own allotments.
But the number of bees recorded in the UK has fallen dramatically in the past few years, with scientists still unsure of what has caused the deaths.
While some think Colony Collapse Disorder is caused by global warming, others have been concerned about the lack of natural habitats available to the bees because of the increasing amount of agricultural land in the country.
But don't despair, Sainsbury's might have a solution!
Bee Hotels might sound like sub-standard accommodation – a poorly maintained drive-in motel or an ailing budget destination – but they are actually specifically built contraptions that allow the insects to take a break from their work and get a shot of nectar.
The only tools needed to make this tiny structure are a used orange juice carton, a number of bamboo sticks, a saw, tape, a pencil, a ruler and a knife!
While more instructions can be found on Sainsbury's website about the idea, which will hopefully see the numbers of both solitary bees and honey bees rise – we'll leave it to an expert to explain why these contraptions are needed.
Robin Dean, the grocer's own beekeeper: "Female solitary bees will be facing a potential housing crisis in late March when they start emerging unless we intervene to help. We also need to start creating new nesting sites now because if we wait until the first signs of bees hunting for new homes it's likely to be too late to make a real difference."
Here at MowDIRECT we fully-back Sainsbury's proposal to encourage an increase in bee numbers and as garden-lovers we should all make sure we do our bit to give a boost to our yellow and black-striped friends!
