Wow! No, I wasn't dreaming about the bees.
That's a Bee's Colony Collapse Disorder.
'...The phenomenon is recent, dating back to autumn, when beekeepers along the east coast of the US started to notice the die-offs. It was given the name of fall dwindle disease, but now it has been renamed to reflect better its dramatic nature, and is known as colony collapse disorder. It is swift in its effect. Over the course of a week the majority of the bees in an affected colony will flee the hive and disappear, going off to die elsewhere. The few remaining insects are then found to be enormously diseased - they have a "tremendous pathogen load", the scientists say. But why? No one yet knows.

 The disease showed a completely new set of symptoms, "which does not seem to match anything in the literature", said the entomologist.

 the few bees left inside the hive were carrying "a tremendous number of pathogens" - virtually every known bee virus could be detected in the insects, she said, and some bees were carrying five or six viruses at a time, as well as fungal infections. Because of this it was assumed that the bees immune systems were being suppressed in some way.
...Those dead bees that have been found nearby have only deepened the mystery.

"They are just dirty with parts and pieces of various diseases," said Jim Tew, a beekeeping expert with the OSU Extension campus in Wooster. "It looks like a general stress collapse."

In the meantime, accumulating reports tell us that the problem is not constrained to the U.S. alone - but that, to one degree or another, empty hives are becoming common in Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Switzerland, Poland, and now possibly the UK. (There are same reports now start coming from Asia, Taiwan being the first)

Here is a link that might be useful: Colony Collapse Disorder

I saw honeybees on the daisies this morning, and I bet they are from my new hive.

Fellow gardeners, look into beekeeping. It is another dimension to gardening. Property large or small, suburban, urban and rural...at least read about it!

There's not much we can do to help the big beekeepers who keep thousands of acres pollinated for agribusiness, but we can make our own contribution to local gardens and our own.

Marie

Marie -- if I am not hijacking, do give us an update on your hive. I am so curious. George -- I've seen a few bees and plenty of grubs.........

George, I've noticed the same thing with the bees. Don't have a grub problem so I can't say on that one. I was just saying to my DH yesterday for the umpteen time this spring, where are the bees?

Actually, I think it was last year that I posted that I was seeing bees dying in the yard. I would come out and find dead bees just lying on the foliage sometimes 10-20 a day. It was in the fall and someone answered my post saying they normally die in the fall. That answer didn't satisfy me because I had never seen that happen in my yard in 30 years. I grow organic and no one around me gardens at all, so I know it isn't anything specific to my neighborhood.

I always notice the bees and look forward to them, so this is something very drastic and noticeable this year. I can count about 10 times this spring that I have seen one bee. Usually when my plants are in bloom, they are covered with all kinds of flying insects and nothing this year.

pm2

Ego,
There must be a hive somewhere near by because I have tons of bees. There where so many enjoying the nectar of a Japanese crabapple as well as near by Viburnum burkwoodii that it was deafening and I could almost feel the vibrations from their activity. I will say last fall far before my first frost one day a row of sedum 'Atumn Joy' were covered in bees and the next there wasn't one to be found...it was soo creepy. kt

We have quite a few of the big bumblebees but I've not seen a honey bee yet. We live in an isolated area though so my property's not a good indicator. We also don't have many grubs; hence, not many beetles (including the dreaded lily beetles)...knock on wood! We have quite a few birds but not all of the common ones...like, for example, no bluejays here on the penninsula. We do have cardinals & robins. Oh, I saw an oriole a couple weeks ago.

I've been reading about the plight of the honey bees. Seems like it will have a large-scale effect on food production? I wonder if it has anything to do with climate change...changing weather patterns making the timing of their food sources unreliable & leaving them open to deterioration of their immune systems?

George -- I'm sorry to say that we seem to have plenty of grubs (I'll have to try the Milky Spores) ... as for the bees, there is indeed a major problem with Colony Collapse but Connecticut has no confirmed (though one possible) case (so far!) We just did an item for a state science publication I edit about it -- the Agricultural Experiment Station is researching the problem, monitoring Connecticut bee hives, trying to find what's going on (I'm sure there are ag stations all over the country doing this -- just thought I'd mention that our folks -- and your tax dollars! -- are hard at work, too!)

Here is a link that might be useful: Recent Courant article on colony collapse and CT bees

Bumblebees have been around and I've seen a few other bees, but not great quantities. I have few grubs as usual but the next door neighbor has a lot.

It might be worth keeping notes on whether people get fruit/berry set on various shrubs this year. I have a number of hollies (opaca, meserve and verticillata - winterberry) and cotoneasters that always have berries. I also have highbush and lowbush blueberries that are in flower now.

There are also cherries, crabapples and viburnums in the yard.

Some of these may be self-pollinating or wind-pollinated, but I would think that a major decline in bees would show up in diminished fruit set.

Claire

I've seen all of 3 yes THREE honeybees this year. After I read about the die off I decided to keep track. Very sad, I'm scared to death of wasps and hornets but like the honey bees. I have seen some bumbles and carpenter bees. The rhodies which are usually covered with honeybees are sadly silent this spring.
I do have tons of grubs though, I put them in a plate for the skunks at the end of the yard so they don't dig in the garden, works so far.

What is very interesting to me is that honeybees are not native to North America -- they were brought over by the colonists in the 17th and 18th centuries. Most pollination prior to the settling of North America was presumably done by other bees, right? Like the humble bumblebee (which is native)? So it is curious that we (meaning American agriculture and horticulture) have become so dependent on a non-native species to pollinate our crops and gardens...

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to history of beekeeping in the US

there was a big news story on tv a few weeks ago about the honeybees, scientists beleive they have found a link to the decline of honeybees to the usage of cell phones..

would any of you give up the usage of your cell phone to save the bees ? It was a question they asked at the end of the segment...

Cell phones? WHO is everyone talking to and why is it so freakin' important to talk at 75 mph? Or through parking lots at 30 mph? Good grief....shut them OFF!!

I have one........it's never "on". Just for an emergency.

Yes, I think cell phones are just one more problem for the bees...not to mention the rest of us.

And to respond. Just a few bumblebees...not a single bee and I have a "bee garden".

We had a doubling of digger bees in our yard this spring. Great pollinators and stuff. But only last abou 3-4 weeks. Which is fortunate for us because out entire 1/2 acre of land is covered by them.... yes we are talking about thousand and thousands of them.

Even talked to UConn about them, they were thrilled and tried to figure out a way to relocate them but couldn't. Its a problem for us and our 15m old, who loves being outdoors. So we are looking into alternative, non pesti. ways of getting rid of them...

Haven't seen any honeybees.

Last year we had a crazy amount of bumblebees that had set up a nest in one of our older, rotted stumps. None this year, and definitely not seeing any honey bees. I have noticed that wasps and yellow jackets are abundant and HUGE this year though.

I know where the grubs are, if you'd like some I can dig up a shovel-full of them any time in the next couple of weeks.

OK, judging by reports grubs are pretty much present this season everywhere except my garden.
Should I make a reasonable(?) presumption that Milky Spores indeed works?
I remember from the last year discussions that quite a few people start using it. Does it work for you?
Again, last year was #3 since I started MS-programme, and while in a previous years progress was just marginaly noticeable, this year's results are just amazing!

I've used MS a couple of times, most recent application was last year, I think. Digging up part of the lawn to put in a new garden, I'm seeing plenty of grubs. My understanding is that MS is only effective against Japanese Beetle grubs, and there's a good chance I've got Asiatic and/or Oriental Garden Beetles, that's what I mostly see in the garden.

As a fairly new gardner...this is a great thing to say:
Finally something I am doing right!
I have all the grubs and bees you want....come right over and get them! Really...I have a huge population of each and though I am on a pond, i am not too far from the city and on a busy road, so it is weird that there is a thought that cell phones are attributing the decrease in the population....
but since I got rid of the bush, does anyone have infor on starting a safe hive away from the house? maybe I can make up for cutting down the bush...it wasn't my intention to decrease their food, I just needed them away from my deck for medical reasons.

Not knowing there was a problem with the population of bees, I took down some form of hydrangea bush (white oblongish flowers) that was here when we moved in. I often have my students to the house and several are allergic to bees as are some of my friend and this was basically on top of the deck.