August 31, 2013 · 0 Comments
The three use to go hand in hand. Many new comers to Beeton may not know that this area was full of apple orchards; one of the largest was Kate Aitkin right here in the center of Beeton. Sadly, it was eventually torn down in the name of progress for a new housing development. This development street signs, now bare the name of the orchard it now sits on.
As an aside, in the early 1900 thru to mid century, we use to grow more than 100 different varieties of apples in Ontario, can you imagine!
Where does the bee thing come in? As you may know, in the past our Village was also known for its Bee keeping with many hives being maintained in the area. The Kate Aitkin Orchard was full of hives and Beeton Bees were responsible for pollinating many of the farmer’s crops in the area, including: apples, pumpkins blueberries, cherries and onions to name a few. Did you know that in North America, according to the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and as reported by Fox News, “more than $15 billion worth of crops are pollinated by bees each year just in the United States alone. Put another way, one of every three bites of food Americans consume comes from a plant visited by bees or other pollinators”. Farmers rely on bees to pollinate up 100 different types of crops but unfortunately, due to the use of new pesticides which uses a new “neonicotinoid” technology used by large farming operations, has caused the death and decline of up to 30% of the bee population in North America, according to recent studies! This new pesticide is made from “nicotine”, (yes the same drug many of us are trying to give up) and is placed in the roots of the plant in pellet form. It is then absorbed by the plant and by transfer of the pollen to the bees. I understand that due to costs, smaller, organic or more local farmers may not use this type of pesticide; hopefully our local farmers don’t. As reported by Fox news: “In 2010, New York City lifted the ban on urban beekeeping, following similar actions by Seattle, San Francisco, and Chicago, and since then, it has become quite popular among city residents and most recently, the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel has set up a beekeeping operation on its roof to harvest honey. And they’re not the only ones to jump onto the beekeeping bandwagon; hotels around the world have started providing homes for bees as well”.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m no expert on farming; these are my own observations and concerns for our environment. As I travel around New Tecumseth. I notice many apple trees have been left unattended by the side of the road or in back fields, many uncared for. I have a grower friend in Nova Scotia who says if you keep the tree well trimmed the apples will grow bigger and juicier. By my observations we probably have enough apple trees in New Tech to feed our own population and continue to support our local Bee population if they were maintained? Perhaps this could be a school project in conjunction with local land owners? At least we consume our own home grown honey which according to Beeton, local Producers, Sharon & George Overton, has a special flavor some of which derived from the apple trees in our area.
By Alan Masters