The Angry Bee

[flowerbug]

it was my fault. i didn't know it had gotten inside my gardening shoe. at least i didn't know it until i moved and pinched it and then it expressed it's anger at being pinched by stinging the top of my foot.

i've been stung enough to know that feeling for what it was so i got my shoe out of the way and brushed it off. it was a small wasp and not technically a bee, but for purposes of this post i'll call it a bee beecause i've had other similar experiences where i was stung and then more mayhem ensued...

in this case the bee kept wanting to sting me in that same spot. in the past i've had them attack my shoe repeatedly to little effect and again this one also wanted to sting my shoe some more. so i came back inside and changed my sock hoping that would get rid of the scent marker it must have put on me because it kept wanting to buzz around and looking like it wanted to sting me yet some more.

um, nope, i don't want that to keep happening. so i came inside again and this time i changed socks on both feet, but i also wiped down my feet and legs with apple cider vinegar and then took rag outside and used some tree tea oil to wipe a little of that on my legs and the other pair of garden shoes.

when i went back out the bee completely ignored me and i did not see it again.

previously i'd had another type of bee doing similar actions and reactions so now i know what i can do perhaps to avoid more attacks after an accidental encounter.

i have no intention to ever harm a bee or wasp or many other creatures if i can avoid it so we'll see how this goes in the future. if this method will work...

of course the best approach would be to not wear anything that a bee might get into by accident and then be pinched as that is about 99% of the time how i get stung. i've not probably been stung that many times to come up with that percentage. usually it has been more the past few years but only maybe six times the past 10 years. maybe 30 times total in my life. considering i work in the gardens for hours at a time surrounded by thousands of bees i don't think i'm doing bad at all.

 

[digitS']

Rubbed some antihistamine on it, FlowerBug?

Something that surprises me is the "single-mindedness" of Honey Bees.

How can it be of any survival benefit to land on a clover flower within less than a foot of an advancing lawnmower? The lawn has more and more clover plants over the years. When I'm on a long stretch of maybe 20 - 50 feet, I can watch, slow and give the bee the warning it needs to move out of the way. But, I may need to make 90° or sharper turns and sometimes multiple ones within a few feet. I have to watch closely. A bee may come down slowly onto a flower within inches of the rumbling, grass-tossing mower, even after I have just passed within inches a few seconds before.

Nearly touching it with the mower, the bee often acts in an aggressive way, although, I have always been safe to ignore it. It zooms around and then disappears. Dang near suicidal!

Steve

 

[heirloomgal]

My dog had a massive seizure last week as a result of a bee sting. I really thought he might die, it was terrible to watch. I have a big problem ahead of me to deal with; a yard with lots of clover, all of which needs to be totally eliminated. I need to eliminate bees & the attractants as much as I possibly can without using products that are extremely toxic.

 

[Cosmo spring garden]

Oh my!

My dog had a massive seizure last week as a result of a bee sting. I really thought he might die, it was terrible to watch. I have a big problem ahead of me to deal with; a yard with lots of clover, all of which needs to be totally eliminated. I need to eliminate bees & the attractants as much as I possibly can without using products that are extremely toxic.

Poor dog!

 

[Cosmo spring garden]

For anyone that may want a great cure for stings, activated charcoal poultice is amazing! I mix 1:1 part charcoal powder with flax ground or chia seed grounds (this helps it to stay in place) and add enough water to make a paste. Keep in fridge til ready to use. When needed, put enough on a piece of moist paper towel to cover the effected area, place towel on the skin (charcoal side against skin) and wrap the whole area with seran wrap (if possible). Leave it on for an hour or so. It's amazingly effective!

 

[flowerbug]

Rubbed some antihistamine on it, FlowerBug?

no, i didn't put anything on it. it did hurt for a while as i was weeding and where the shoe kept coming in contact with it but pain really doesn't compute for me at small enough levels. i didn't have any trouble sleeping last night. it itches this morning.

Something that surprises me is the "single-mindedness" of Honey Bees.

How can it be of any survival benefit to land on a clover flower within less than a foot of an advancing lawnmower? The lawn has more and more clover plants over the years. When I'm on a long stretch of maybe 20 - 50 feet, I can watch, slow and give the bee the warning it needs to move out of the way. But, I may need to make 90° or sharper turns and sometimes multiple ones within a few feet. I have to watch closely. A bee may come down slowly onto a flower within inches of the rumbling, grass-tossing mower, even after I have just passed within inches a few seconds before.

Nearly touching it with the mower, the bee often acts in an aggressive way, although, I have always been safe to ignore it. It zooms around and then disappears. Dang near suicidal!

when i'm mowing i walk along at a reasonable pace to get the job done, but that pace is largely determined by how thick the grass is and how hot it is. if it is really hot i go slower. i usually have clover to go through on the south side and there's some bees but they move away.

the last time i mowed i did give a praying mantis some time to move to a safer spot. it was a brown one that was about 5cm long.

the absolute worst event of a bee sting was when i had a large bumblebee hit the mirror on the outside of the car and it exploded into parts including one that went right down my shirt behind my neck and middle back. they can sting multiple times. quite a fun time of it getting pulled over safely...

 

[flowerbug]

My dog had a massive seizure last week as a result of a bee sting. I really thought he might die, it was terrible to watch. I have a big problem ahead of me to deal with; a yard with lots of clover, all of which needs to be totally eliminated. I need to eliminate bees & the attractants as much as I possibly can without using products that are extremely toxic.

sadly there are so many different kinds of stinging bees and wasps and such that i think that would be a rather futile endeavor to eliminate all flowers from a place. you may instead want to check into having the epipen available and also seeing if the dog could be desensitized by getting allergy shots. or keep the dog inside... sad to hear any animal suffer.

my niece came to visit a few weeks ago and she said she was allergic to bees and we did a garden tour which she only said this after we'd already walked out to the gardens. there are so many bees around here that had i known i would not have taken her out there. no problems at all that time, but i do know that people who are allergic can mistakenly swat at bees or can act in ways which are going to get them mad. basically, just take it easy and don't move fast and watch where you are stepping or moving. avoid clothes which might trap them. have shirt sleeves which close completely, etc. no poofy or pirate shirts, tutus, etc.

 

[digitS']

Bees are considered personal partners in life, if not quite friends. I made the mistake toooo many times of going out barefoot in our clover and grass pastures. Wasps preying on insect pests ... pollinators ... honey makers .

Stings cause a strong reaction and DW once said that 2 at the same time would probably kill me. I proved her wrong by once falling on a yellow jackets' nest and being stung on both arms .

My brother years ago bought a motorcycle and I took it for a ride in the country. Hit a bee below the helmet, it went under my shirt and stung me on the back. The result was my fault , I turned around on the wet shoulder of the road, dumped the bike in the barrow pit. It was okay except I bent the kick starter. Not quite recovering my composure, I reached down to bend the lever back straight and burned the back of my hand on the engine!

Ha! Quite a clown show there in Naples Idaho .

Benadryl helps a lot in more normal situations.

Steve

 

[SPedigrees]

For anyone that may want a great cure for stings, activated charcoal poultice is amazing! I mix 1:1 part charcoal powder with flax ground or chia seed grounds (this helps it to stay in place) and add enough water to make a paste. Keep in fridge til ready to use. When needed, put enough on a piece of moist paper towel to cover the effected area, place towel on the skin (charcoal side against skin) and wrap the whole area with seran wrap (if possible). Leave it on for an hour or so. It's amazingly effective!

Another effective "homegrown" method is to make a paste of baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) and apply it to the sting(s).

 

[SPedigrees]

I co-exist with bees as long as they don't nest in or right around my house. I've never been stung by any of the bees on my flowers; they're too busy collecting pollen, and the fat fuzzy bumblebees seem to be the most docile of all.

Wasps and hornets on the other hand have very short fuses and no sense of humor! I have little regard for these predatory creatures, and I patrol my barn and house looking for nests to remove, preferably before a colony begins to grow.