The Honey Bee
As you walk through the park you should see bees
gathering nectar (carbohydrate) and pollen (protein) from the blossoms of plants
and trees. They are also gathering water and visiting the trees where they
collect sticky substances (propolis). The nectar and pollen are their primary
foods. The water is used for their “air conditioning system,” and the propolis,
meaning “for the house,” is used to varnish the inside of the hive, seal the
cracks and “glue” the various parts to form a strong structure.
There are probably about 40,000 bees in
this beehive. The adult bees forage as far away as 10 Kilometers and must make
as many as 75 such trips to produce even a gram of honey. The work of foraging
for the colony is so demanding that the bees die after about three weeks of this
strenuous activity.
The nectar garden is maintained by the Master Gardener Volunteers of
Cobb County.
The hives are maintained by members of the North Metro Beekeepers’
Assoc.
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(position your curser at the lower right hand corner for
the answers)
What is the major benefit we derive from bees?
How many flowers must bees visit in order to produce one pound of honey?
What "farmer" produces food only for himself - yet without him, the world's food supply
would suffer, and some foods would become extinct?
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