BeeCheck Opinion

[Tim KS]

I'm starting a new thread to get opinions about BeeCheck and it's usefulness.

My apiary locations are registered with Beecheck to help prevent them from getting sprayed. Bee thieves beware! I have a large dog and a night vision scope. Hives are less than 50 yards from the house. Just saying.

JWP and others, what are your opinions of BeeCheck........do you think commercial sprayers check in with them to become aware of the location of hive?

For a couple of years I registered my hive location with them, but I don't think it does much good. The commercial guy 'may' check, 'might' spray when the wind keeps chems off your hives, but it doesn't stop my bees form going to the poison.

I've come to think that publishing the location of my remote hives puts them more at risk of theft or vandalism than a safeguard against poisoning.

Comments or thoughts.....?

[JWPalmer]

Tim, it is really hard for me to say if it does any good or not. I am in a more wooded area near, but not adjacent to, a significant amount of cropland. I am reasonably certain the local cropduster does check with them, but not certain about the ground based sprayers. I am more comfortable with registering my locations because one is my house and the other is at my work. Do not know how I would feel about a location that was visisted infrequently. I am a proponent of statewide apiary registration if for no other reason than to know where the next mite bomb may be coming from.

[FrankBarbee]

In looking at the map I see big red shapes and when I click them I can't get any information on them. What do they represent?

[JWPalmer]

I just looked at Virginia and I do not see the red shapes you mention. I do see a whole bunch of beehive shaped pointers and when you click on one it gives you the name and address of the registrant. If you zoom in, you see a red circle that I believe represents the no-spray zone.

[FrankBarbee]

Saw quite a few in Ohio, a few were close by my place.

[Tim KS]

I live in an ag intensive area....lots of aerial & ground applied spraying going on during certain times of the year. It's mostly herbicide intensive but insecticides are scattered in now & then also.

I've had several bee kills in the last few years, but nothing major like totally killing whole colonies. But some colonies have suffered setbacks that seems to take most of the summer to rebound.

In those cases, I have talked with the farmer and the aerial applicator. The farmer says, "I have a pest that's eating my profit, so I order spraying. The applicator sprays when conditions are good for him to fly & get the pesticide to the problem." Both are just doing their best to survive in their business. I understand their problem.... I've been in both of their shoes in the past.....I just want to encourage them to do their best for my bees as well.

[NorthMaine]

Dumb question, but why is it limited to certain states?

[Tim KS]

About BeeCheck

BeeCheck™ is operated by FieldWatch, Inc, a non-profit company created by Purdue in collaboration with interested agricultural stakeholder groups. For more information, visit www.fieldwatch.com.

This mapping tool is meant to help pesticide applicators and beekeepers communicate more effectively to promote awareness and stewardship activities to help prevent and manage drift effects.

This site features a powerful map interface that clearly shows applicators the locations of registered sites so they can use the information in their ongoing stewardship activities before they spray.

[RangerLee]

As a California commercial guy... I love it... makes moving bees so easy and sprayers have to use it here

[NorthMaine]

I read the 'About' couldn't see anywhere why they only were in certain states before I asked.

[JWPalmer]

Info from the FieldWatch web site.

FieldWatch, Inc. is a non-profit company created to develop, expand and continue to innovate the DriftWatch Specialty Crop Site, BeeCheck Apiary Registry and CropCheck Row Crop Registry.
Our tools are voluntary in nature, free to use and were originally developed by the Purdue University Agriculture and Biological Engineering Department. The university’s successful web-based program, launched in 2008, was effective in allowing both farmers and applicators to identify, map and communicate where high-value specialty crops are grown as part of ongoing stewardship activities.

As the tool caught the attention of neighboring states, a non-profit company was formed called FieldWatch. At that time, FieldWatch transitioned from the Purdue IT environment to a secure private IT service provider who developed a national software program from which to grow FieldWatch into a national registry. Today, FieldWatch has expanded into twenty-one states and one Canadian province.

The program is continuing to expand as more states sign on. Here is a link to an article in Progressive Farmer that highlights some of the driving forces with states adopting the program.

https://www.dtnpf.com/agriculture/we...h-spray-season

[Tim KS]

JWP, thanks for taking the time to look for that info. I knew the info was there, but didn't have the time yesterday to search it out.

[Murdock]

My home county sprayed for mosquitoes last year. The operator contacted me, came by, and shut down his spraying 200 yards from the apiary.