By Sarah Pugh

James Bay beekeeper Brian Scullion loves bees. That much is obvious after just a few moments talking to him. After a slightly longer talk, in the honey-scented air and constant buzz of his yard, it becomes apparent that he is a walking encyclopedia of bee-related knowledge, despite his claims of still learning a great deal and being a newcomer to the pastime.

Scullion began keeping bees in 2001, after he, along with many others, got a mental jolt from the events of September 11 that year. He had always wanted to get into beekeeping, but the sudden world-change prompted him to actually do it. He started with one hive, and never looked back. "If only I'd decided to do it sooner," he says wistfully.

Small-scale, backyard beekeeping operations like Scullion’s are not typically cash cows. Scullion says he breaks even on his honey, but that's it. It's something that Scullion and others like him do for love, and not just love of bees - love of the fruits and vegetables that depend on bees for pollination. Scullion also enjoys learning about bees generally, and his bees in particular. He has been selectively expanding his bee populations since he started, with obvious success.

He is fortunate with respect to his location, too. James Bay enjoys a unique microclimate even within the capital region. At one point last winter, Scullion is quite sure that his bees were the only ones flying in Canada due to a nation-wide cold snap - James Bay is surrounded on 3 sides by water, which provides just enough warmth to keep the bees active year-round.

Scullion's neighbours benefit from his bees as well. Honeybees are exceptional pollinators, and used worldwide to pollinate food crops. In fact, most of the food we eat, with the exception of grass-type crops like corn and wheat, require pollination by insects, most often bees. "Two thirds of the food you put in your mouth needs bees," says Scullion.

One of the problems facing world food supplies today is dwindling numbers of bees. Nobody is sure exactly why this is, but Scullion points to varroa mites as a major factor. Varroa mites are bee parasites that both weaken bees and pass on viruses that actually kill bees. Well-managed hives like Scullion's can keep the mites under control, but wild hives have no such caretakers to clean and remove mite-harbouring materials, and many succumb completely to the mites. Many gardeners in the region have noted that there have been fewer and fewer bees in recent years, and Scullion thinks the mites are probably responsible. The mites developed in southeast Asia in the 1960s, from an imported Japanese mite, and most honeybees have no natural resistance to them.

Bees also face adversity from an illogical source - humans. Despite relying (albeit mostly unknowingly) on bees for so much, many people still confuse bees and wasps, and kill bees for no good reason, or apply pesticides that affect bees in their yards. Bees are much more docile than wasps and sting only when seriously provoked, and they are extremely sensitive to pesticides since they can carry dangerous residues back to the hive. Scullion strongly urges everyone to educate themselves on the differences between bees and wasps, to avoid pesticides, and to leave the bees alone - and, better yet, to plant flowers that the bees will enjoy. Scullion especially encourages people not to be afraid of a swarm of bees, should they see one. Swarms are rarely dangerous, as they are focused on finding a new home. If you see a swarm, contact the Capital Region Beekeepers' Association, and someone will come to capture it.

Part of the mandate of the Beekeepers' Association is public education, and Scullion (who is co-president of the association) embraces that mandate happily. He is a strong proponent not only of raising awareness of the role of bees in food production, but also of more local, sustainable food production overall. He points out that monocropping requires far more bees for pollination than smaller, diverse farms, and with dropping bee populations, the old style of farming with chemicals and heavy equipment built for huge fields makes less and less sense. "Trace your food back and see where it comes from," he says.

Scullion formerly sold his honey at the market every week, but this year he is taking more time in the summer to spend with his family, and the Capital Region Beekeepers' Association is sending different members' (including Scullion's) honey to the market stall each week. Honey from Scullion's and other CRBA members' hives can be found at the James Bay Community Market at Menzies and Superior on Saturdays, along with sustainably-produced vegetables and fruit, brought to you by hardworking farmers... and bees.