Product Description

Now updated — your guide to becoming a successful backyard beekeeper

Interested in raising honey bees? This friendly, practical guide presents a step-by-step approach to starting your own beehive, along with expert tips for maintaining a healthy colony. You get the latest on honey bee medication and treatments, harvesting and marketing your honey, and the impact the sudden disappearance of the honey bee has on our environment and economy.

• To bee or not to bee? — understand the benefits of beekeeping and whether it's right for you

• Build your first hive — gather the right equipment, obtain your bees, and transfer them safely to their new home

• Get up-close and personal — see how to open and close the hive, inspect your bees at the right times, and know what to look for

• Handle common problems — from swarming to robbing to pesticide poisoning, find simple solutions

• Understand Colony Collapse Syndrome — learn what you can do to help save the honey bees

• Gear up for the golden harvest — use the tools of the trade to extract honey, store it, and sell it

Praise for Beekeeping For Dummies

"The information a beginner needs to keep bees with confidence."
— Kim Flottum, Bee Culture Magazine

"A reader-friendly guide to beekeeping for novices or beginners."
— Dewey M. Caron, Professor of Entomology, University of Delaware

Open the book and find:

• The various types of honey bees and the role each plays in a colony

• Hands-on instruction in building a hive

• How to keep bees healthier and more productive

• Guidelines for all phases of honey production

• New information on raising your own queens

• Plenty of helpful, illustrative pictures to guide you

• The safest ways to inspect and enjoy your bees

• A Beekeeper's Calendar organized by climate zones

Customer Reviews (74)

Good beginner book
Just wanted to say this book helped me more than the standard beekeeping introductory book I purchased along with my first hive and suit.

Great resource...
I have read this book twice now... what a great book for someone starting out as a beekeeper! Hope you enjoy it as much as I am.

Beekeeping Spelled out REALLY well
"Beekeeping For Dummies"
by Howland Blackiston

Book Review by Jay Gilbertson

Though I would hardly suggest that if you are indeed a beekeeper, that you're a dummy, for me this wonderful book was just the right place to begin a new (and really sticky) hobby. Since author Howland Blackiston has been an actual beekeeper for over 20 years, I felt that alone was enough proof that the guy knows his bees. Boy does he!

The layout of this particular beekeeping guide was the real deal-clincher when trying to find the one-and-only. There's an enormous collection to choose from and since this is truly my first stab at beekeeping, this book laid out a practical foundation. Blackiston takes you through the process from picking up your bees, to setting up a bee apiary (or bee yard), observing your hive from spring through summer, to fall honey harvesting and wintertime's slumber. Of course, Blackiston reminds you, that though the bees rarely leave the hive in the winter, the worker bees are working like crazy to keep the queen warm and make sure her every need is met.

One of the many great surprises about Blackiston's approach was that throughout the book he tosses in a great deal of history as well as oodles of useful hints and advice from just where to put your hive, to different methods of harvesting honey, to properly tucking in your hive(s) for winter. Some of the more interesting facts are that beekeeping has been around for at least 5 thousand years, yet not until October 30, 1851 did the actual practice of beekeeping become a more standardized, and thus teachable, trade/hobby due to a fellow named Langstroth. Reverend Landstroth was the one responsible for devising the interchangeable hives that are still in use today.

As with any all-inclusive guide such as this, there are a few things that disappointed. The main issue I have is that Blackiston doesn't suggest many alternatives to drugs for disease management. I have always been leery of jumping on the medication train especially since I have learned (from local Beekeeping expert; Bee-Bob-Wright) that there are some really successful techniques available. Such as using powdered sugar to rid your bees of the pesky Varroa Mites instead of the more aggressive approach using chemicals such as fluvalinate or coumaphos. With names like that, wouldn't you be a bit apprehensive seeing as everything that goes into your hive, ends up in the honey?

One aspect of beekeeping that Blackiston does really hammer home is the need for more of us (hint, hint) to consider becoming beekeepers. The reason we need more hives is the mysterious onset of the yet-to-be solved issue of CCD or Colony Collapse Disorder. In short, CCD is the strange phenomenon of an entire hive of bees simply--one day for no apparent reason--disappearing. A literal army of apiculture extension specialists, researchers, and government officials has come together to work on CCD.
Here are some numbers to consider as to how dang important bees are to us as gardeners and farmers:

* Apple tree without bees--25 apples/tree--with honey bees--1,200 apples

* Alfalfa without bees--62 lbs. seed/acre--with honey bees--220 lbs. seed/acre


Beekeeping isn't just for dummies, and I don't know about you, but I can't imagine a summer without them.

For more information on CCD research: [...] or [...]

Wisconsin Bee-formation: [...]

excellent book for bee keepers!
I am starting my fist hive this year and this book is a life saver. Very easy to read and understand. A great step by step guide to help you gt started on beekeeping! Highly recommended!

Beekeeping for Dummies
Very informative.Realize it is a hobby not an inexpensive way to get your supply of honey. ... Read more

Product Description
The buzz on beekeeping.

The Complete Idiot's Guide(r) to Beekeeping has all the information a begin­ning beekeeper needs to know to start a hive and keep it buzzing. Expert beekeepers Dean Stiglitz and Laurie Herboldsheimer, owners of Golden Rule Honey, take readers step by step through the entire process-from information on the inhabitants of a hive and how it works to collecting bees, keeping them healthy, raising a queen, harvesting honey and wax, and stor­ing hives for the off- season.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Essential guide for *non-chemical* beekeeping ...
In an age of Roundup resistant weeds that are out of control in 13 states,staph infections from bacteria which are immune from any treatment and considered *killer* infections which breed in hospitals, and beef/chicken/swine production so dependent on anti-bacterial drugs that the animals are artificially surviving ----- this book offers beekeeping methods FREE OF CHEMICAL TREATMENTS. Bravo!

One chapter in the book, "Managing for long-term success," sums up why this book is different. For those of us who know that putting apistan and terramyacin in hives is just wrong and no longer effective, this book provides an entire management program (many different methods) for keeping bees naturally.

With so many ecosystems, (fisheries, forests, pollinators), crashing or becoming extinct, it's time that we start saving our planet's natural systems so that we might survive as a species. A school child asked a biologist when on a field trip, "What is your favorite endangered species?," and the biologist answered, "human beings."

This is a comprehensive guide for beekeepers who want to have good information about the various practices which allow *sensible* and *thoughtful* beekeeping in an age where solid solutions are required. Get this book and start thinking for yourself about what makes sense for your bees, then implement those methods and start becoming part of the new chemical-free beekeepers. After my first year, I abandoned the use of chemicals and have always felt it was my wisest move in beekeeping. This book provides an overview and methods for being successful without chemicals.

Make your beekeeping healthy - this book helps you get there!

Wonderful book !!!
I am a first year beekeeper. I am heartened and inspired by Laurie and Dean's book.This book agrees with my thinking that we should work with nature rather than force it to our will.

I learned a lot about what to look for in the hive as well as different ideas for inexpensive equipment and techniques.

Their writing style is easy and laid back, not preachy at all.

This book is a fun and informative !Highly recommended !

Must Read
Only beginner book I've read geared on chemical free beekeeping.
All club libraries should have this one.

A picture's worth a thousand words
I found the book very informative, however, you can only explain so much about bee keeping in words.Illustrations need to be incorporated to emphasize the narration.This book is suppose to be for novice
beekeepers who haven't seen the inner workings of a hive and can't picture in their minds what is being explained.I realize that pictures would add a few dollars to the price, but it would be worth it.

BEEBOOK
This is a great book for beekeeprs and wannabee apiarists. Full of interseting facts and an easy to follow format.
Arrived in good time and in excellent condition so kudos to the bookseller. ... Read more

Product Description
The various chemicals used in beekeeping have, for the past decades, held Varroa Destructor, a mite, and other major pests at bay, but chemical-resistance is building and evolution threatens to overtake the best that laboratory chemists have to offer. In fact, there is evidence that chemical treatments are making the problem worse. Natural Beekeeping flips the script on traditional approaches by proposing a program of selective breeding and natural hive management.

Conrad brings together the best organic and natural approaches to keeping honeybees healthy and productive here in one book. Readers will learn about nontoxic methods of controlling mites, eliminating American foulbrood disease (without the use of antibiotics), breeding strategies, and many other tips and techniques for maintaining healthy hives. Conrad's reservoir of knowledge comes from years of experience and a far-flung community of fellow beekeepers who are all interested in ecologically sustainable apiculture. Specific concepts and detailed management techniques are covered in a matter-of-fact, easy to implement way.

Natural Beekeeping describes opportunities for the seasoned professional to modify existing operations to improve the quality of hive products, increase profits, and eliminate the use of chemical treatments. Beginners will need no other book to guide them. Whether you are an experienced apiculturist looking for ideas to develop an Integrated Pest Management approach or someone who wants to sell honey at a premium price, this is the book you've been waiting for. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

One of a kind
This is a great book and truly unique in the world of bee keeping - well, there are a few others, but none so well done.We are grateful to have an alternative to harsh chemicals and are so glad we found Conrads book.There are a few socio-political commentaries that you may or may not agree with, but otherwise a great handbook for the holistic bee keeper.

Beekeeping at its best
easy to read and understand.....info given is of great help with organic hints as well..its exactly what i was looking for...i was completely satisfied and i am sure that i will reach for the book to check certain things out...natural beekeeping is of the greatest importance to me and with the help of this book i am sure that i will succeed.

minimal chemical for hive management
Honeybees are in trouble therefore our food supply is in trouble.For anyone who thinks that the blanket use of pesticides and antibiotics may be contributing to the die off of so many hives, this book offers a low impact approach to hive management - this is great book to have.

beekeeping in a more natural way
this is a good book for those trying to keep bees with less or no chemical treatment--it is good for hobbyists and backyard beekeepers. wish there were more photos and charts to describe and show methods. a better trend for future beekeeping. worth the purchase.

Unnecessary Fluff
While the author provides some usuful basic beekeeping information, he wastes unnecessary space, almost half the book, trying to convince the reader that current liberal political agenda items such as Global Warming is good reasoning to utilize his method of Natural Beekeeping. The question that this leaves me with is, is the author more interested in Beekeeping or Liberal agenda.

I have read a post World War II article from a French author to help reconstruct France that provided better scientific reasons for Natural Beekeeping. ... Read more

Product Description
Whether you're a beginning beekeeper or one with a season or two of experience, Richard Bonney tells you how to keep bees, not just have them. This new book by the acclaimed author of Hive Management offers vital, up-to-date information about how to: -- Acquire bees -- Install a colony -- Manage a hive -- Take a crop of honey -- Prevent and treat Varroa and tracheal mites -- Learn about Africanized bees ... Read more

Customer Reviews (14)

Great Seller -- Good Book
I am new to beekeeping, so cannot give strong specifics about the details of the book.What I can say is:

+ The seller delivered the book quickly and well packaged.

+ The book was highly recommended to me by someone who has been keeping bees, multiple hives, for over 20 years, and has lots of honey production.

+ The book is straight-forward to read, gives additional resources on the topic, and is written in clear language.

A book for a Beek's library
Well written.Has great information and easy to read.Every new beek (bee keeper) should have a copy.

Very Informative
This is a great book for anyone who is interested in beekeeping. It outlines the needs and requirements of being a beekeeper in a very well-organized way.

Thanks from Germany
Thanks for sending us this book to Germany. It takes a few days time, but it was OK - like the discribtion. THANKS.

great reading!
Found this book to be well written, as complete as one could expect, once one starts to read it's difficult to put down!! ... Read more

Product Description
Beekeeping is both a hobby and a practical business plan that many individuals have taken up in recent years as a viable way to culture a valuable natural resource and have fun in the process. In any given year, an effectively built beekeeping business can bring profits up to 500 percent of your investment according to numerous private beekeepers. The benefit of growing your own honey and selling it to local customers for between $3 and $6 a pound depending on how you cultivate and whether your honey is completely organic can be a huge boon for anyone with the money and time to invest. This book walks all motivated potential beekeepers through the process of building and operating their beekeeping business from the ground up, ensuring it is both a fun hobby and a great way to make a little extra money on the side. You will learn everything you need to effectively start beekeeping for profit and fun, including what materials you need, what kinds of bees are best for honey or wax production. You will learn all of the fundamental safety equipment you need to effectively handle the bees and where to place your hives on your property to take advantage of natural circumstances. You will learn the basics you need to understand what bees do and how they interact, including details about the queen bee, the worker bees, drones, and foragers. You will learn how seasonal changes affect your colonies, and how to use your smoke to access and gather honey from your bees. The best in home beekeeping professionals have been interviewed and their expertise and insights have been gathered here for you to review, providing additional details about the kinds and methods of honey gathering that you can profit from you. You will learn how to install everything and keep your colonies updated. You will learn how to keep the necessary records and how to sell your honey and what the best prices for that honey is. You will learn what is involved in opening a colony and how to manage pests effectively without endangering the bees or the honey. You will learn how to manage your hives in the winter and fall and what you can do with everything your bees produce. For anyone who has ever considered beekeeping as a hobby or source of side income, this is the book for you. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Very informative, easy read
This book is very informative and an easy read.It covered more about beekeeping than I could ever imagine.It will be a great resource when I getmy hives.

If there is a reason one writes books this is it, knowledge.
Never judge a book by its cover is the meaning that is taken as I read this book, The Complete Guide to Beekeeping for Fun & Profit: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply. For the novice, the author packs this book with helpful hints and numerous suggestions for keeping bees as well as beekeeping as a business. Keep in mind the information one would have to know about this type of endeavor, the hazards, relative medical information, the cycle of the seasons, the best time to produce the product, management techniques, extraction techniques, the hierarchy of a bee society, sickness and disease harmful to the bees as well as tips on the treatment and animals, pests, insects and rodents. What I have mentioned thus far does not include the profit aspect, uses for honey, nutrients, dangers of contamination of plants, the reaction and symptoms to spot diseases that can ruin entire hives. Cindy Belknap, truly guides the reader through the A B C's to farming bees. Yes, there is the long lengthy and a bit wordy discovery of the intricacies of bees but necessary if you know nothing as I. Yet, for the beekeepers their options for profit become vast.

Personally, I am not interested in bees in the slightest. Yet, here I've learned what is needed to take care of a colony of productive bees as well as the troublesome areas that all beekeepers face. The images are a very nice addition as are the diagrams I feel could have come earlier to break up the very detailed extensive meaningful fact finding environmental information of bees and their cycle of life. I like honey but I would have never looked at it in the way that the author describes the honeybee. I have garnered a great appreciation of the bee and the honey gather. This is very useful knowledge when understanding that product being produced. As a consumer I would never be aware of the numerous uses for honey and the wax produced by bees. I was delighted to discover other terms, uses and names that honey is called. This is a fun book to read. I do love that fact that the book is printed on recycled paper. I now consider beekeeping as a retirement option.

All you need to know
Knowing very little about beekeeping and bees in general I found this book to be a very eye opening read.Cindy Belknap delivers on the title, for this has to be the complete guide that one would need to get started in beekeeping.There is an overwhelming amount of information packed into this book.
The author does a good job in warming the reader to the topic, delivering a number of facts on why bees are very important in our modern world.To find out that bees and the pollination they provide are directly responsible for billions of dollars in agriculture in the United States alone is a bit shocking.The author obviously has a large amount of respect her subject and it shows through in the writing.In this book, the reader will discover everything they ever needed to know about bees and beekeeping.
After learning of the importance of the bee in society, the reader is then treated to a detailed investigation of the honeybee itself.The name of this chapter is "All About Bees" and that is no joke as Belknap delves into the physiology of bees, the social caste of the hive, the work done inside and outside the hive and the mystery of how bees communicate.After reading this chapter you will know definitely know if you want to pursue beekeeping as a hobby or profession, the amount of information will either ignite your desire or overwhelm you.
If you decide to move on, things will get even more complicated.The next chapter covers everything you must do once you decide that beekeeping is for you.Topics covered here include, start up costs, different types of hives, the smoker, feeders and feed, clothing for the beekeeper and finally the bees themselves.Also covered are the important considerations of hive placement and knowing your local laws in respect to beekeeping.
The keeping and working of the hive is reviewed in exhausting detail next.Everything the vigilant beekeeper would need to know is covered here, dealing with stings, harvesting the hive, illness inside the hive, dealing with pests of all shapes, size and temperament.
Organic/Natural beekeeping is also looked at.If the task of beekeeping was not an arduous one before, the amount of work that goes into organic beekeeping is even more daunting.There is a lot of labor and thought involved with organic beekeeping, but there is a huge payoff on a personal and financial level for those that can maintain an organic/natural hive and honey production.
The business of bees and bee products are also looked at.Belknap details how to start your own small business here and what products once can manufacture, sell or be involved with.
In the final chapter, the author delivers a way for the beekeeper to enjoy their labor, a huge number of recipes based around your beekeeping and honey collection.
Lastly, if more information is required, the resources included in the appendices include the dissection of the bee, the lifecycle of the bee, a month-by-month beekeeping calendar, fun facts about bees and an exhaustive glossary of terms relating to beekeeping.
In the end, I would find it hard to believe that there could be a more detailed tome on the subject of beekeeping out there outside of academia.For the novice interested in beekeeping, this book will surely become your bible.

WOW! This book was FUN to read!
This book would be great for students, those interested in beekeeping and those who are current beekeepers.It is a very easy read and simple enough for a young student to understand, and interesting enough for adults!The complete guide to Beekeeping clearly defines the different types of bees and their roles in the hive. I was not particularly interested in bees and now I find them fascinating!The author, Cindy Belknap, gives clear guidance and case studies for current beekeepers, which is very helpful.I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, not just beekeepers!

Informative guide
I was impressed at how educational and interesting the book was considering I had no inkling of what beekeeping entailed. It was an easy-to-read instructional manual on how to raise bees for fun and profit. The author makes excellent points that beekeeeping is a serious hobby/business and not to be taken lightheartedly, proving she is not haphazardly promoting it to everyone. She also provides online resources for further research. I was pleasantly surprised the author also provided information on cooking with honey and offered recipes using honey. I am presuming it is to show additional benefits of raising bees besides selling the honey. I didn't know there were many uses for beeswax, another added benefit to beekeeping. I liked the illustrated calendar of what to do each month in raising bees to offering recipes which I felt was distinctive to other guides out there.
She even provides fascinating facts about bees to keep up the pace of the book and prevent it from being very dry material. I never knew queen bees will venture out far to find drone bees to mate with and avoid inbreeding. Even bees want to keep robust colonies with variety of genetic background! She gave out the fact also to delineate one of the importances of switching out queen bees at a time for your own beekeeping hive. (There may never be a chance your queen bee travels out far enough to find more drones beyond your backyard!)
I did notice a lack of diagrams and drawings that could've been useful for describing what homemade beehives would look like. I ventured out and realized she could have included more options to the dilemmas of beekeeping. She mentioned for instance, only using vegetable oil to ward off ants who might infiltrate hives. Could there be other eco-friendly alternatives?
Would I recommend using only this guide as a resource for a beekeeper? I would say given the information which seemingly didn't cover everything, I would only utilize it as part of a beekeeping resource collection. But all in all a good general guide to beekeeping.





... Read more

Product Description
Mysteries of Bee-keeping Explained is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by M. (Moses) Quinby is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of M. (Moses) Quinby then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A history lesson in beekeeping from 1853
I have only checked out the sampler of this book but it was written in 1853.

If you are looking for a modern book on bee keeping, to learn bee keeping or as a reference manual THIS IS NOT the book you are looking for.

If you wish to study the long winded prose of yesta years (how to drag out not getting to the point) or are writting a theses on the history of bee keeping then you may be interested in this book - best of luck my life is too short.

If Amazon or the person that put this book on Amazon are reading this review: Please update the product description. ... Read more

Product Description
2010 Reprint of original 1934 edition. The Dadant family, originally from France, is one the first families of beekeeping in America. Charles Dadant (1817-1902) is considered one of the founding fathers of modern beekeeping. He was always seeking a better way to keep bees. Just as he had begun with the old European "eke", he quickly abandoned that kind of beekeeping for the modern Langstroth hive concept. Bee hives have often been designed and built without regard for the needs and habits of the honey bee colony. Probably the best design for a colony was the large hive developed by Charles Dadant. It provided a large, deep brood chamber with plenty of room in which the queen could lay, and shallower supers for honey storage. However, the price and promotion of smaller hives offered for sale during the period from about 1885 to 1900 made them more popular. Charles son, Camille Pierre Dadant, authored First Lessons in Beekeeping, a standard and still important work on this subject. Dadant's book and its succeeding editions have been America's first stop for beginning beekeepers for over 90 years. Lavishing illustrated with photographs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

A practical book
From a beginners standpoint this is an excellent book.This book is packed full of information and an excellent reference. This title gives you the principles you have to know to start seriously thinking about beekeeping.

Besides this book I'll recomend you this one:
The Complete Book Of Beekeeping

First lessons in stateside beekeeping
I found the book to be a good start for an absolute beginner like me. However, I live in the Caribbean, and the book is geared more to beekeeping in the US. I completely skipped the chapters on wintering and post-wintering your bees. We also have completely different flora.

It Stunk
I purchased this book because I am getting a beehive this year.The book was an ancient edition and falling apart.I mailed it back to the sender.

a practitionor of the art, with alot of experience.
I have not read this book, but for the uninformed, the Dadent and Sons company, has been selling products-including stock for the hives, and queen bees, for a very long time. I contacted them in the early 70's. their catalog was very informative.

I don't know which dadent he is, but I would not easily doubt whatever is in this book.

Dang good bee book
Great beginning book for those new to the hobby and a grand refresher for those a little more experienced.Fine work. ... Read more

Product Description
A million pounds of honey. Produced by a billion bees!

This memoir reconstructs the life of a young man from Pennsylvania as he drops into the bald prairie badlands of southern Saskatchewan. He buys a honey ranch and keeps the bees that make the honey. But he also spends winters in Florida swamps, nurse-maid to ten thousand dainty queen bees.

From the dusty Canadian prairie to the thick palmetto swamps of the American south, the reader meets with simple folks who shape the protagonist's character - including a Cree rancher with three sons playing NFL hockey, a Hutterite preacher who yearns to roam the globe, a reclusive bee-eating homesteader, and a grey-headed widow who grows grapefruit, plays a nasty game of scrabble, and lives with four vicious dogs.

Encompassing a ten-year period, this true story evolves from the earnest inexperience of the young man as he learns an art and builds a business. Carefully researched natural biology runs counterpoint to human social activities. Bee craft serves as the setting for expositions that contrast American and Canadian lifestyles, while exemplifying the harsh reality of a man working with and against the physical environment. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Excellent Reading
This is one of few books that I can truly call a must read - if you are a beekeeper.The book is very well written, easy to read, hard to put down.The character development is excellent.I did not want the book to end.The only complaint I have is that the auther appeared to rush the last chapter in order to finish up the book - that is okay.I can't think of a better way to end the book.

Not Really a Beekeeping Book
'Bad Beekeeping' isn't really a beekeeping book, at least not in the sense of how to keep bees.Rather it is more of a memoir of the author's life during the time he was a commercial beekeeper.

It is very well written and Ron Miksha has a wry sense of humor.'Bad Beekeeping' is a fun and interesting book with interesting insights.

Bad Beekeeping
Instead of "Bad Beekeeping," Ron Miksha's book could have been called "Portait of the Beekeeper as a Young Man," since it is all about his growing up as a commercial beekeeper in the 1970's and 1980's.Working the canola bloom, his summer beekeeping operation in Saskatchewan, and working citrus, his winter beekeeping operation in Florida, Ron had a unique run as a beekeeper that is simply not possible today. Regulations, rules and differing concerns on opposite sides of the U.S./Canadian border made his operation a one-of-a-kind, as well as one-of-an-era.

His story is a roller-coaster ride of great successes matched with spectacular failures.His calcuations and plans meet with the unexpected and that is the fun of his tale.Although no longer a commercial beekeeper; instead now, a geophysicist and entrepreneur, he remains a hobbyist beekeeper in Alberta.As beekeepers, we have not lost one of our own.

Best Book in Ages
Bad Beekeeping is not a bad book at all!It is hilariously funny and packed fun of really neat things everyone would like to know. It's all about bees and beekeeping, but all about lots of other things, too. This is such a great book, I started on Friday evening and read all weekend long. Couldn't put it down.Best book I've read!

Nothing "Bad" about it!
Nothing bad about this book, Ron has given the beekeeping world another cracking good read. There is every thing here, history fun information and entertainment. Also a very good read for those people who do not have the insanity to employ millions of buzzing workers, with potentially very hot tails! An excellent book.
... Read more

Product Description
A fascinating hobby; a remunerative business; or a globetrotting career? Which type of beekeeper do you want to be? It is entirely up to you: beekeeping can provide it all.Beekeeping can provide anyone with an interesting and useful hobby or a lucrative and rewarding business. It is recognised as a vital agricultural industry and can therefore also offer you a globe trotting career. The whole subject is, however, often shrouded in mystery and loaded with jargon, leaving many people unaware of its true potential or how to start. This book strips away all the mystery and explains step by step how - from day one - you can start beekeeping as a hobby; how you can progress to running a beekeeping business; or how you can start a career as a beekeeper which can quite easily take you all over the world. No other guide explains in such detail the true potential and accessibility of beekeeping or of being a beekeeper. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (3)

Bee keeping 101
Just got into bee keeping. The book was full of info and advice. Could not have gotten better help.

Superb Introduction to Beekeeping
A terrific introduction to beekeeping for beginners.I have referred back to it countless times during my first two years of keeping honeybees. Dr. Delaplane's writing style is concise and to the point, and there is not a wasted word in the book. I believe that Dr. Delaplane is also a researcher investigating the cause or causes of Colony Collapse Disorder, and I certainly wish him success with that undertaking.

Great Introduction to Beekeeping
Covers the basics of beekeeping in brief, but elegant detail.I recommend it for introduction to beekeeping classes.I wish Amazon would stock more copies.It is available directly from Dadant, the publisher. ... Read more

Product Description
A classic text from one of the world's experts on bees. This comprehensive guide will give beginners all they need to start and maintain a healthy bee colony, while experienced beekeepers will find advice on expanding into new areas of the business and how to refine their skills. Subjects covered include:• Buying a colony of bees• Managing bees throughout the seasons• Selecting equipment and a good apiary site• Preventing swarming• Extracting, processing, and selling honey• Controlling pests, predators, and diseases• Rearing queen honey beesPhotographs and technical drawings illustrate the text, and appendixes define technical terms, list sources of supplies, and tell you where to go to find more information. 49 black and white photographs, 3 illustrations, index. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Its an ok book.
I had wished this book was actually newer with more information on the latest bee problems facing us in North America. The book is written well, but sort of outdated being written in the 90's. Over all it was a decent read, but I wished I hadn't purchased it along with the beekeeping for dummies book.

Perfect guide for beginner beekeeper
This provides details on how to start and maintiain a healthy colony. Includes buying, managing, choosing equipment, controlling pests, and all aspects of making honey. A good easy-to-understand guide for the beginner.

The New Incomplete Guide to Beekeeping
I have about 17 books on beekeeping related topics and I found this one to be the most lack luster of them all.Like the other reviewer said it touches briefly on all aspects of beekeeping but does not go into any real depth.I found its section on How To Get Started On Beekeeping pathetic. On installing a package of bees it offers six black and white photographs and a few lines of text underneath each picture to describe what is going on.That?s it!!.It does not mention anything about what to feed them once they are installed, your first inspection and what to look for, or a description of the equipment you will need to start your first hive. I think most beginners are very concerned about starting the process correctly and more attention should have been placed on the first few weeks of establishing a hive. Dr. Morse did not even go into the topic of establishing a colony with a nuc.Dr. Morse is a very well known and respected professor at Cornell University who I might call one of the founding fathers of modern beekeeping.Unfortunately, he wrote a crappy book that offers little to the new beekeeper.Two books I would recommend are John Vivian's "Keeping Bees".Although it is slightly dated when it comes to managing mites the rest of the book is invaluable as a source of information.Richard Bonney's two books on beekeeping are also very good.

incomplete guide to beekeeping
this is a good book for someone interested in beekeeping, but offers little to someone who is actually getting started in beekeeping.It contains an introduction to nearly every important topic in beekeeping, butis not in depth enough to help anyone who has bees and has questions aboutthem. ... Read more

Product Description
Basic facts about keeping and working with bees and harvesting and selling honey. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An infomative narrative on the art of beekeeping
The author calls his book a "rejoicing" and his affection and respect for honeybees is readily evident in his lively, interesting and perceptive writing.Indeed, he lets us know that beekeeping is an art andthe results of our working with and observing bees may result in far morethan the delicious comb honey which the author favors.Richard Taylor,besides a beekeeper and author in this field, is, additionally, ateacher--a professor of philosophy.I, like many others I suspect, enjoybeing one of his students and dancing with him and his bees in thiswonderful ballroom called life. ... Read more

Product Description
This definitive work by world-renowned bee authority Eva Crane offers a fascinating account of bees and their complex relations with both humans and animals. Comprehensive, absorbing, and lavishly illustrated, this scholarly, yet accessible volume explores how bees, honey and other bee products have been gathered and utilized throughout the world.

Beginning with the rock paintings of the Mesolithic cave dwellers, readers will learn about the variety of methods used by human beekeepers, the stratagems used by animal honey-hunters, and the multitude of products humans have derived from bees. The first in-depth book on the subject, the World History of Beekeeping and Honey-Hunting is the ultimate work on bees for scholars in biology and the life sciences, professional and amateur beekeepers, and anyone who is interested in bees or the collection of honey. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Expensive Addition to Beekeeping Library
The Author provides very good coverage in the areas with which she and her network of peers were familiar. But belying the book's title, there are huge gaps in her knowledge -- for which she does allow and begs forgiveness.

Her field research and travels in parts of Europe, the Middle East and Southeast-Asia places greatly influence -- perhaps too much -- her coverage of beekeeping in these areas. She provides good general coverage of traditional hives in history and in current usage.

However, her research pretty much stops at 1998 or so, and thus has little to say about the recent proliferation of top bar and other unframed hives in "emerging economies" and in the West.

Substantially missing are discussion of post-Langstroth developments in hive design and beekeeping methodology. For instance, the early-mid 20th Century writings of Abbé Émile Warré and later non-Rationalist trends in beekeeping are not mentioned. Warré's Ruche Populaire (People's Hive) has been rescued from a half-century of obscurity, and is gaining adherents in the post-Rational beekeeping movement of the 21st Century.

So this book has excellent coverage of beekeeping's history, proving that humans have been doing it for an awfully long time; yet it is a dated work of pre-internet scholarship, and so its limitations must be kept in mind.

Great on detail, not an easy night's read.
If you are scientifically-minded and love lots of little details, this is a great book for you.Eva Crane has well-documented her resources, and if you can get through all the details, you find great stories as to the origin and development of beekeeping in different cultures.However, this is not a storybook, or a book you might expect a child to read - it is stock full of info.I personally love this book, and think it is well-worth the high price.However, it is not a book for everyone.

The world history of beekeeping
If you are at all interested in bees or you are a beekeeper this is the book for you!
Eva Crane has just about left no stone unturned in her research for this book and has covered all four corners of the Globe.
The evolution of beekeeping is fascinating and this book cover an increadable time line from early man right up to present time.
The illustrations are plentiful and very well presented throughout the book.
A must for any beekeepers library. ... Read more

Product Description
More and more Americans are becoming concerned about living a healthier and more environmentally friendly lifestyle.

Whether it’s moving to the country and starting over on a whim or just making city- living a little simpler and easier, the “Green” movement is changing the way we live our day- to-day lives. Skyhorse's Self-Sufficiency handbooks are meant to help—offering advice on what to do, how to do it better, and how to save money as well. This is a beautifully illustrated series made even more beautiful, because its goal is to help everyone live in a more earth-friendly fashion.

While beekeeping is about managing, controlling, and under- standing the honey bee, there is also the pleasure that can be found in harvesting and eating your own honey—a true delight! All aspects of beekeeping are explained inside this book: the basic tools and equipment needed, detailed advice on when to harvest honey, and the many tasty things you can make. This is an essential guide for anyone interested in learning more about beekeeping.

Product Description
This is the ideal guide for anyone wanting to start beekeeping and a revered reference book for experienced beekeepers. It includes information on all you need to know, including how to avoid swarms, plan requeening, or provide the colony with winter stores. It features key information on Varroa. It is copiously illustrated throughout. Fully revised and updated, this new edition of "Guide to Bees and Honey" also presents expert advice for readers who plan to maintain a few hives for personal recreational use, as well as those who want to expand an existing colony into a commercial venture. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Book purchesed
The product I bought from Amazon was Guide to bees and honey by Ted Hooper an exelent referance for beginers and experienced bee keepers alike, My book was Dispached by Amazon without delay exelently priced and exatley as Decribed on the Amazon Site.

Excellent Authority on Bee keeping
I opened this book knowing absolutely nothing about beekeeping. My goal was simply to learn more, not start my own hives, and this book was perfect for my uneducated beginings. If starting you own colonies IS your goal, this book takes you step by step through the process. Despite being over 20 years old, the book is as relevent today as when it was first published. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Calling all Bee Keepers
A must read for all newbees in the bee keeping world. This is a very informative book as are all his writings.I enjoyed it very much and will use it for reference I am sure some where along the Bee Keeping path

Delightfully Smitten with Bee Fever
This author, who writes on behalf of his father and himself, achieved the Guinness World Record for most honey from one hive, so he knows whereof he speaks.However, the great pleasure to be had from reading the book is the gentle and joyful tone of this true beekeeper (ie bee lover), (not unlike Richard Taylor, my other favorite bee writer).If you want an engaging read, with simple yet masterly information, this is a charming beekeeper's companion. ... Read more