Pollinating Change with Molla Adugna in Ethiopia

Molla Adugna has five children and lives in Fogera, Ethiopia. To make ends meet he works hard cultivating crops including produces teff, rice, maize, onion, tomato, grass pea, chick pea. He also rears livestock and has 15 beehives. Molla noticed that as he used more pesticides, his honey bees were dying.

“I was causing harm to my bees by applying pesticides on my vegetables. I am to blame. But what can I do? This is the modern way”.

Molla’s understanding of pesticide use changed dramatically after attending Bees for Development’s Farmer Field School. Before this, he knew little about the negative impact of pesticides in the agro-ecosystem. He applied excessive pesticides as he didn’t understand about alternative methods of pest control, the role of natural enemies of crop pests and the pollination service of beneficiary insects.

We spoke to Molla about his use of pesticides before and after attending Bees for Development’s Farmer Field School and how what he learned affects his farming and beekeeping now:

Explain to us your understanding of the problems of using pesticides:

Molla: Use of pesticides has various negative impacts in our agro-ecosystem. The main problems are that it reduces the bee colonies, directly by killing the bees, and beneficiary insects/ natural enemies of crop pests and pollinator insects. In addition to this, it increases the cost of production and the quality of the product is also poor due to the residue of pesticides on the product which can affect human health. As a result the market demand is reduced compared with products produced without pesticides. Nowadays, customers do not want to buy vegetables produced by the use of pesticides; even farmers do not want to feed their cattle the straw of cereal and pulse crops, because it affect the health of their cattle.

What have you learned?

Molla : After I joined Farmer Field School I learned alternative practices to reduce the pesticides use and its negative impact on bee colonies and in the environment at large.

Among the alternatives are:

• Use of cultural practices such as farm assessment, use of frequent periodic ploughing (to kill pests or their egg or larva in the soil), hand weeding, and crop rotation
• Application of botanical pesticides (food spray, soap and neem seed extract)
• Use of biological control methods such as birds, and other beneficiary insects like ladybird beetle and others
• To save these beneficial organisms, we need to leave areas of a farm uncultivated that provide the necessary habitat for pollinators and these beneficial insects to thrive
• If pesticide application is a must, I learned how to identify the pest, the specific chemical to control the identified pest, and when and how to use pesticides.

Are you practicing the alternatives on your farm?

Molla: I am. I’ve been practicing some selected methods like use of cultural practices, and use of botanicals. Because, as I said earlier use of pesticides; reduces the bee colonies, it affect human and animal health, it damages beneficiary insects/ natural enemies of crop pests and pollinator insects. Moreover, it is costly to buy the pesticides, and reduces the marketability of the product. Overall, it degraded our agro-ecosystem

Is beekeeping an important activity for your family?

Molla: Yes, beekeeping allows both children and adults to witness the complex dynamics of a bee colony and understand the responsibilities involved in caring for these vital insects. It offers a multitude of learning opportunities and the chance for families to bond over a shared interest. For example, the practice of constructing and maintaining beehives and harvesting honey can educate children about the environment, the lifecycle of bees, and the importance of pollinators in our ecosystem. Honey is one of the most valuable farm products we have and as a cash commodity it covers various expenses of the family such as to purchase fertilizer and other expenses.

How can bees be protected from pesticides in the future?

Molla: To reduce the impact of pesticides and protect bees from pesticides damage, the whole community should be educated on the side effect of pesticides and should reach on consensus on their agricultural practice. This may include use of non-chemical methods such as cultural and botanicals as a first and priority method. Provide an agricultural landscape which includes pollen, nectar, water, nesting sites and materials needed by bees and other beneficial insects to complete their life cycles. If chemical spraying is a must we need to reduce the amount and apply less harmful pesticides that target specific insects if necessary and apply only if a problem persist. Use pesticides carefully and in the evening when pollinators are not active. Overall, if the community developed common understanding about pesticides we can protect our bees from the damage of pesticides, however more effort may be required on the knowledge of the community.

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