Why Brandon University is setting up beehives on campus
The Brandon University campus is abuzz.
The university is bringing a small number of urban beehives to the city of Brandon as part of a five-year pilot project called Bee-U, which launched last year.
In 2022, there were two hives on campus that produced 250 lbs of honey. This year they are splitting the hives to create four.
“We’ll see how much honey they produce. We’ll see how active the bees are throughout the city, but it’s going to be exciting to see how we can grow with this project,” said Deanna Smid, an associate professor at Brandon University, in an interview on Tuesday.
Over the course of the summer, the hives are set up, maintained and then removed. Once they are removed, the honey is harvested and the bees are returned to their apiary for the winter.
Smid said the project highlights the importance of bees and other pollinators. It also boosts food security in the city of Brandon, as some of the honey is donated to food security organizations.
“It’s easy to forget how important bees and other insects are, but when they’re in your backyard, almost literally, it’s harder to not have them at the forefront of your mind,” she said.
According to a report from the Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists, last year was a tough one for bees as there were major losses. Smid explained this does not just impact beekeepers, but has an effect on Manitoba’s agriculture.
“The losses in 2022 were catastrophic. Beekeepers lost close to 100 per cent of their bees,” Smid said, adding that it’s a bit too early to tell what the bee losses were like over the winter.
For those who want to help the bees in their own backyards, Smid’s suggestion is to do “nothing around your yard.”
“Allowing weeds, like dandelions, to grow is actually essential for honeybees and for native pollinators. It’s one of their first food sources in the spring,” she said.
For anyone who wants to catch a glimpse of the hives at Brandon University, they are located on the roof of the Knowles-Douglas Student Union Centre. The university also plans to install cameras to set up a hive-stream.
- With files from CTV’s Ainsley McPhail.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.