Pollination Agreement

[doodlemaier]

Pollination Agreement


I,(name, address)hereby provide(name, address),live honeybee colonies for the intention of crop pollination. The colonies are maintained on the property at the above address year-round as of __________. The provision and condition of all necessary equipment (the hives, any support structures or accessories, supplemental feed) and bees, including their management, any liability incurred in servicing the hives, and any damage to them resulting from wildlife, weather, etc. will remain my responsibility. I will occasionally require access to the hive site and will provide at least ______ advance notice by phone or email. At any time should they present a nuisance in any manner described by their hosts I agree to remove all hives and any related material within 10 days.

The honeybee colonies are provided in good faith that best land and watershed stewardship practices are upheld, however I would appreciate to be contacted in advance of the event that any known genetically manipulated crop, or pesticide proven or implicated in the destruction of honeybee habitat is planned for use on the property. It is at their behest (Farm Name) reserve a perennial location and safe forage for up to ______ conservation hives. The purpose and design of the hives, for restoring and localizing honeybee genetics, precludes that inspections are performed within the nest as with conventional hives managed for harvesting honey, relying instead on some minimal observations most of which can be performed at a safe distance from the entrance of each hive.
A healthy hive:

∙ has plenty of bees coming and going during daylight, beards on hot evenings
∙ remains free of any obvious infestation of moths, flies, ants, or marauding hornets
∙ has foraging bees returning with pollen, a good sign of a present laying queen
∙ breeds bees of a gentle and non-offensive temperament
∙ smells wonderful!

In times of drought or dearth it may become necessary to supplement a colony with a premixed sugar syrup and bottles of feed will need to be replaced often, sometimes daily. This normally being the exception; most often bees in conservation hives maintain themselves as would a feral colony. Regardless, I should be contacted immediately in any event of the following:

∙ any obvious damage to the hives, or equipment malfunction
∙ presence or evidence of pests
∙ no activity at the entrance of a hive on fair weather days (temps above upper 50’s °F)
∙ a swarm on the property

______________________
(beekeeper)

damosher@gmail.com
office (Business Name - weekdays 0:00am - 0:00am) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxx.xxx.xxxx
home (weekends, message) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xxx.xxx.xxxx
urgent (cell). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxx.xxx.xxxx

Comments

[doodlemaier]

I've made the updates by your request. Thanks for your input as it will serve as template for such agreements in the future, and please know that this copy is always open to you so it's adaptable, as well. The hives won't require any kind of daily inspection, I included that more as a general guide as to what you can expect and look for and be aware of in terms what's "normal". Also, don't sweat the neighbors. I'm confident enough that anyone who chooses to live in your area has at least the minimal awareness and interest in stewarding their immediate environment. I keep hives in the 'burbs of DC as well and all bets are off as to what the neighbors there put on their lawns, public grounds and corporate landscapes. These are the chances we take.

Drought' s a different matter, though certainly not a deal breaker. In thinking about a network of conservation hives in broader terms it's pretty clear that there's no practical way for me to be able to coddle remote colonies through dearth all across the region and so I'm leaning toward adapting some sort of bucket-style emergency top feeder that can hold a few gallons of syrup per colony at a time. Fortunately, I've got some time to work on that issue. Cross your fingers for rain and shine in equal measure.The fact of the matter is we can't control most things in the range of their forage but the point is to open the margins where bees have the time and space where they are able to adapt. All the intervention and "help" I've tried to impose on my bees for the last couple of years hasn't amounted to any more than dead bees. Honeybees are worth failing at, though and now that I've learned to step aside and let them express their own true nature, as pollinators, as a super-organism and not merely a honey and wax factory, I believe I'm onto something! Thanks again for choosing to host hives on your farm, especially the unconventional methods and concepts I employ. I hope they are able to serve your land and bring you joy for years to come.