BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 15, 2022
In Aroostook County, where numerous commercial crops depend on bees for pollination, the insects face a lot of perils, even cellphone towers. Jonas Swartzentruber, who hosted a session at his Easton farm on keeping bee colonies alive, was left with just two hives alive out of 14 at winter’s end. Bees and other pollinators — butterflies, moths, beetles, flies, ants, bats and hummingbirds — are crucial to crops like squash, almonds, avocados, apples and berries. Pollinating Maine’s wild blueberry crop alone takes more than 45,000 hives containing 1.4 billion bees, State Apiarist Jennifer Lund reported. With many losing at least half their hives during the winter, County beekeepers are concerned about how to help Maine’s bee population thrive.