Happy Rolph’s is the bee’s knees

Beehives installed at nature park in effort to help reverse declining bee populations

A new eco-initiative is creating quite the buzz at Happy Rolph’s Animal Farm.

The city has partnered with Small Scale Farms — a network of farmers, food suppliers, and workers who focus on local food distribution — to install beehives at Happy Rolph’s as part of a public-awareness effort to reverse declining honey bee populations.

“The bees need our attention,” said Renee Delaney, founder of Small Scale Farms. “Beekeepers can measure what is going on through the honeybee. If the honey bees are dying, so are the other native bees.”

Seven beehives have been strategically located on the west side of the pond, away from public areas so residents and bees can safely share the park.

“The bees are helping promote the ecosystem,” said Delaney. “When the kids come to the park, they see the goat. It is very different than reading about a goat in a book. Having the bees at Happy Rolph’s allows us to talk and think about what is really going on in the ecosystem.

“It’s one of the subtle little things we can do to challenge people and get them thinking.”

Delaney said it is through initiatives such as urban beehives and pollinator gardens that St. Catharines has taken the lead in protecting the environment.

The number of honey bees housed by each hive varies based on time of year. Small Scale Farms is providing the beekeepers and maintaining the hives. Any honey will go toward Small Scale Farms’ food assistance program.

Residents at Happy Rolph’s are at no more risk of being stung than before beehives were installed, said Ilyse Norton, development horticultural technician who is overseeing the initiative for St. Catharines

Honey bees are passive and gentle by nature and will sting only when frightened or aggravated or if the hive is threatened. Residents concerned about bee stings — or who have allergies — are encouraged to be cautious or avoid the area west of the pond.

“The diverse mix of flora and naturalized areas at Happy Rolph’s makes it an excellent location for us to launch our urban beehive initiative,” said Norton. “Honey bees colonies have been declining everywhere and the fruit and vegetable crops we rely on are in danger if this continues to happen. To reduce the risk for bee stings, we’ve made sure to place the urban beehives out of the way of the general public.”

Pollinators play an important role in helping grow fruits and vegetables: pollinators move pollen from flower to flower to help fertilize plants, Norton said.

Only fertilized plants bear fruit and make seeds. Butterflies, hummingbirds, moths, and bats are among the many different kinds of pollinators. Bees are the most common.

However, bee populations have been declining for years because of pesticide use, habitat loss, climate change and other reasons.