ReWilding with Butterflies and Bees

In our earliest HG/SLWCS collaborative pilot project “HoneyBees and Orange Trees”, together we planted 620 trees and installed 8 bee colonies with over 100,00 bees as elephant-deterring “live fences” in 2018. Our solo project in 2019 expanded from there, planting specifically chosen flowers and trees on a 2-acre farm in Sri Lanka in hopes of regenerating butterfly numbers and increasing bee presence.

Can Butterflies and Bees help a farmer’s health?

We know their beauty can help the heart, but the subsistence farmers are struggling with something else. Kidney disease is a debilitating illness sadly common in the small villages. Beehives installed around a farm along with a butterfly garden planted around the home could increase pollination while decreasing pesticide use and help end a cycle of illness.

An increase in pollinators can help build a bridge to a healthier future while additional options and choices are slowly introduced.  It takes time to change minds about how farming practices can help or hurt in the long run, and when you’re just getting by as a subsistence farmer, it can be unsettling to change the methods you’ve used for years.

Combining “western-style” bee boxes with traditional bee pots is a good combination to attract wild swarms. Learning from the old ways while bringing in some new ways values the past while moving ever-forward into the future.

We are not currently taking donations for this specific  project as we’ve had to pause our work in Sri Lanka for a time.  We sincerely hope that passageway might reopen again soon.