"Fewer bees are available to pollinate California's growing almond crop. Beekeepers in the US have fewer bees this year because of drought and ongoing colony collapse disorder."
"TURLOCK, Calif. -- In an almond orchard in California's Central Valley, bee inspector Neil Trent pried open a buzzing hive and pulled out a frame to see if it was at least two-thirds covered with bees.
Trent has hopped from orchard to orchard this month, making sure enough bees were in each hive provided by beekeepers. Not enough bees covering a frame indicates an unhealthy hive — and fewer working bees to pollinate the almond bloom, which starts next week across hundreds of thousands of acres (hectares) stretching from Red Bluff to Bakersfield.
'The bloom will come and go quickly,' said Trent, who works for the Bakersfield-based bee broker Scientific Ag Co. 'The question is: Will the almond seeds get set? It depends if you have enough of a workforce of bees.'"
Gosia Wozniacka reports for the Associated Press February 16, 2013.
Advertisement 
