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Switzerland BEEcomes Careful

A staggering half of the 600 species of wild bees in Switzerland are endangered, a concerning fact when one considers that up to two-thirds of pollination is carried out by these and other insects. Nowadays wild bees lack nutrition and possibilities for nesting. But Hero Switzerland is about to do something against this trend.

“We have launched a campaign promoted via Facebook that shows how anyone can do good for wild bees by creating simple nesting or provide nutrition, even on a window sill, balcony or in the garden,” said Konrad Jäger, Senior Marketing Manager Jams, Hero Switzerland.

The project, launched by the Swiss team, is part of the bee careful initiative and designed as a pilot project. The first phase is now focused on window sills. Balconies and gardens will follow. This is how it works:

  1. In the ‘wild bee hotel’, you find different ‘homes’ for a variety of wild bee species. Most wild bees live alone and not in swarms as their honey bee cousins. This shelter protects wild bees from the elements and provides them with individual spaces, essentially holes, that they use as their home
  2. At Christmas, the Swiss team provided Facebook fans with a packet of selected “bee flower seeds” that now can be planted. The seeds include plants and flowers that wild bees are particularly fond of to pollinate and whose nectar provides them nutrition
  3. Basil, thyme, wild chive are not only great for cooking – wild bees love their flowers to pollinate and get nectar. It’s a win-win situation
  4. Strawberries and peppermint – we love them, and so do wild bees. Once pollinated, strawberries get bigger, better shaped and tastier
  5. In nature we can find particular plant stems that have a hole/tunnel in it. Some wild bee species love to nest in these holes

The Swiss bee-careful website gives further explanations on how to create the perfect ambient for bees. The Facebook campaign kicked off at Christmas time and is now picking up to provide further instructions.

Follow the campaign on the Facebook fan page and find out more the coming weeks.