With the aim of helping the environment, Morgan Freeman turned his ranch into a place to care for bees.

However, beekeeping is not new to Freeman, as he started this hobby back in 2014. On July 25 of that year, the actor spoke about it with Jimmy Fallon during *The Tonight Show*. Freeman had only been a beekeeper for a few weeks before attending the show. During his segment, he shared his experiences with bees and the need to preserve and save wild bees to help the environment.

“I’ve never worn the beekeeper hat with my bees. They haven’t stung me yet, since I’m not trying to harvest honey or anything, but I just feed them… I also think they understand,” he commented.

In the interview, Freeman talked about his motivation to start beekeeping: “There’s a concerted effort to bring bees back to the planet… We don’t realize they are the foundation, I think, of the planet’s growth, the vegetation.”

Morgan Freeman imported 26 bee hives from Arkansas to his Mississippi ranch. On the property, the actor feeds the bees with sugar and water and helps plant magnolia trees, lavender, clover, etc.

“There’s a concerted effort to bring bees back to the plane,” Freeman continued. “We don’t realize they are the foundation, I think, of the planet’s growth, the vegetation… I have lots of flowers, and I also have a gardener. Since she takes care of the bees, everything she does is thinking: ‘Alright, what would they like to have?’ So we have acres and acres of clovers, and we have things to plant like lavender. I have maybe 140 magnolia trees, big flowers.”

But you may wonder, why are bees important?

Bees are essential for the pollination process, and they pollinate over 20 billion crops worldwide. However, despite being vital for the survival of these crops, bee colonies are treated as commodities. Experts note that two-thirds of the country’s bees are transported across the United States every year to pollinate crops and produce honey.

Native bees are also crucial for pollinating crops, but their populations are declining. This is likely due to pesticide exposure and the reduction of food sources as land is converted into corn (the main livestock feed grain) and soybean farming or for commercial and residential development, although this is still uncertain.

Just like Freeman’s sanctuary, planting flowering plants that bees love is a great way to help the insects thrive.