Details

<p>Foreword xvii</p> <p><b>Introduction 1</b></p> <p>About This Book 1</p> <p>Foolish Assumptions 3</p> <p>Icons Used in This Book 4</p> <p>Beyond the Book 4</p> <p>Where to Go from Here 5</p> <p><b>Part 1: Taking Flight with Beekeeping 7</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 1: To Bee, or Not to Bee? 9</b></p> <p>Discovering the Benefits of Beekeeping 10</p> <p>Harvesting liquid gold: Honey 11</p> <p>Bees as pollinators: Their vital role to our food supply 11</p> <p>Being part of the bigger picture: Save the bees! 13</p> <p>Getting an education: And passing it on! 13</p> <p>Improving your health: Bee therapies and stress relief 15</p> <p>Determining Your Beekeeping Potential 16</p> <p>Environmental considerations 16</p> <p>Zoning and legal restrictions 16</p> <p>Costs and equipment 17</p> <p>Time and commitment 18</p> <p>Beekeeper personality traits 18</p> <p>Allergies 19</p> <p>Deciding Which Beekeeping Approach to Follow 19</p> <p>Medicated beekeeping 20</p> <p>Natural beekeeping 20</p> <p>Organic beekeeping 21</p> <p>Combining approaches 21</p> <p><b>Chapter 2: Getting to Know Your Honey Bees 23</b></p> <p>Basic Body Parts 24</p> <p>Skeleton 24</p> <p>Head 25</p> <p>Thorax 26</p> <p>Abdomen 27</p> <p>The Amazing Language of Bees 27</p> <p>Pheromones 27</p> <p>Shall we dance? 28</p> <p>Getting to Know the Male and the Two Female Castes 29</p> <p>Her majesty, the queen 29</p> <p>The industrious little worker bee 32</p> <p>House bees 33</p> <p>Field bees 36</p> <p>The woeful drone 37</p> <p>The Honey Bee Life Cycle 39</p> <p>Egg 39</p> <p>Larva 41</p> <p>Pupa 42</p> <p>Other Stinging Insects 43</p> <p>Bumblebee 44</p> <p>Carpenter bee 44</p> <p>Mason bee 45</p> <p>Wasp 45</p> <p>Yellow jacket 46</p> <p>Bald-faced hornet 47</p> <p><b>Part 2: Starting Your Adventure 49</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 3: Alleviating Apprehensions and Making Decisions 51</b></p> <p>Overcoming Sting Phobia 52</p> <p>Knowing what to do if you’re stung 53</p> <p>Watching for allergic reactions 54</p> <p>Building up a tolerance 54</p> <p>Understanding Local Laws and Ordinances 55</p> <p>Easing the Minds of Family and Neighbors 55</p> <p>Location, Location, Location: Where to Keep Your Hives 57</p> <p>Knowing what makes a perfect bee yard 57</p> <p>Urban considerations 59</p> <p>Understanding the correlation between geographical area and honey flavors 64</p> <p>Knowing When to Start Your Adventure 64</p> <p><b>Chapter 4: Selecting a Hive That’s Perfect for You 67</b></p> <p>The Langstroth Hive 68</p> <p>The Kenyan Top Bar Hive 70</p> <p>The Apimaye Insulated Hive 73</p> <p>The Flow Hive 75</p> <p>The Warré (People’s) Hive 78</p> <p>The Five-Frame Nuc Hive 81</p> <p>The Observation Hive 83</p> <p>Make a Beeline to the Best Beehive 86</p> <p>Hives for harvesting honey 87</p> <p>Hives for pollinating your garden 87</p> <p>A hive for learning and teaching 88</p> <p><b>Chapter 5: Basic Equipment for Beekeepers 91</b></p> <p>Starting Out with the Langstroth Hive 92</p> <p>Knowing the Basic Woodenware Parts of the Langstroth Hive 92</p> <p>Hive stand 93</p> <p>Bottom board 93</p> <p>Entrance reducer 95</p> <p>Deep-hive body 96</p> <p>Queen excluder 97</p> <p>Shallow or medium honey super 98</p> <p>Frames 100</p> <p>Foundation 103</p> <p>Inner cover 106</p> <p>Outer cover 106</p> <p>Knowing the Basic Parts of a Top Bar Hive 108</p> <p>The top bar 108</p> <p>Everything else 109</p> <p>Ordering Hive Parts 110</p> <p>Startup hive kits 110</p> <p>Setting up shop 111</p> <p>Adding on Feeders 112</p> <p>Hive-top feeder 112</p> <p>Entrance feeder 114</p> <p>Pail feeder 115</p> <p>Baggie feeder 116</p> <p>Frame feeder 117</p> <p>Top Bar hive feeders 118</p> <p>Fundamental Tools 118</p> <p>Smoker 119</p> <p>Hive tool and frame lifter 119</p> <p>Bee-Proof Clothing 120</p> <p>Veils 120</p> <p>Gloves 122</p> <p>Really Helpful Accessories 123</p> <p>Elevated hive stand 123</p> <p>Frame rest 125</p> <p>Bee brush 125</p> <p>Slatted rack 126</p> <p>Screened bottom board 126</p> <p>Beekeeper’s toolbox 128</p> <p><b>Chapter 6: Obtaining and Installing Your Bees 131</b></p> <p>Determining the Kind of Bee You Want 132</p> <p>Deciding How to Obtain Your Initial Bee Colony 135</p> <p>Ordering package bees 135</p> <p>Buying a “nuc” colony 136</p> <p>Purchasing an established colony 138</p> <p>Capturing a wild swarm of bees 138</p> <p>Picking a Reputable Bee Supplier 139</p> <p>Deciding When to Place Your Order 141</p> <p>The Day Your Girls Arrive 142</p> <p>Bringing home your bees 142</p> <p>Recipe for sugar syrup 143</p> <p>Putting Your Bees into the Hive 144</p> <p>Hiving steps for Langstroth type hives and Steps 1–7 for Top Bar hives 144</p> <p>Hiving Steps 8–14 for Top Bar hives 150</p> <p>Watching your bees come and go from their new home 151</p> <p><b>Part 3: Time for a Peek 153</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 7: Opening Your Hive 155</b></p> <p>Establishing Visiting Hours 156</p> <p>Setting an Inspection Schedule 156</p> <p>Preparing to Visit Your Langstroth or Top Bar Hive 157</p> <p>Making “non-scents” a part of personal hygiene 157</p> <p>Getting dressed up and ready to go 158</p> <p>Lighting Your Smoker 159</p> <p>Opening a Langstroth Hive 161</p> <p>Removing the hive-top feeder 164</p> <p>Removing the inner cover 165</p> <p>Opening a Top Bar Hive 166</p> <p>The Hive’s Open! Now What? 168</p> <p><b>Chapter 8: What to Expect When You’re Inspecting 169</b></p> <p>Keeping a Journal 170</p> <p>Inspecting a Langstroth Hive 171</p> <p>Removing the first frame of your Langstroth hive 171</p> <p>Working your way through the Langstroth hive 173</p> <p>Holding up frames for inspection 174</p> <p>Knowing when it’s time for more smoke 175</p> <p>Replacing Langstroth frames 175</p> <p>Closing the Langstroth hive 176</p> <p>Inspecting a Top Bar Hive 177</p> <p>Working your way through the Top Bar hive 177</p> <p>Top Bar comb management 179</p> <p>Looking into Top Bar cells 180</p> <p>Replacing the top bars and closing the hive 181</p> <p>Understanding What to Always Look For 181</p> <p>Checking for your queen 181</p> <p>Storing food; raising brood 182</p> <p>Inspecting the brood pattern 182</p> <p>Recognizing foodstuffs 183</p> <p>Your New Colony’s First Eight Weeks 183</p> <p>Checking in: A week after hiving your bees 183</p> <p>The second and third weeks 186</p> <p>Weeks four through eight 188</p> <p><b>Chapter 9: Different Seasons, Different Activities 193</b></p> <p>Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer 194</p> <p>Your summer to-do list 195</p> <p>Your summertime commitment 195</p> <p>Falling Leaves Point to Autumn Chores 196</p> <p>Your autumn to-do list 196</p> <p>Your autumn time commitment 200</p> <p>Clustering in a Winter Wonderland 201</p> <p>Your winter to-do list 202</p> <p>Your wintertime commitment 203</p> <p>Spring is in the Air (Starting Your Second Season) 203</p> <p>Your spring to-do list 204</p> <p>Your springtime commitment 205</p> <p>Administering spring medication 205</p> <p>Reversing hive bodies 207</p> <p>Managing Top Bar Hives in the Spring 208</p> <p>Finding the cluster 208</p> <p>Preventing the urge to swarm 209</p> <p>Expanding the brood nest 209</p> <p>The Beekeeper’s Calendar 210</p> <p><b>Part 4: Common Problems and Simple Solutions 213</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 10: Anticipating and Preventing Potential Problems 215</b></p> <p>Running Away (to Join the Circus?) 216</p> <p>Swarming 216</p> <p>Absconding 227</p> <p>Where Did the Queen Go? 227</p> <p>Letting nature take its course 228</p> <p>Ordering a replacement queen 228</p> <p>Introducing a new queen to the hive 229</p> <p>Avoiding Chilled Brood 230</p> <p>Dealing with the Dreaded Robbing Frenzies 231</p> <p>Knowing the difference between normal and abnormal (robbing) behavior 231</p> <p>Putting a stop to a robbing attack 232</p> <p>Preventing robbing in the first place 232</p> <p>Ridding Your Hive of the Laying Worker Phenomenon 234</p> <p>How to know if you have laying workers 234</p> <p>Getting rid of laying workers 235</p> <p>Preventing Pesticide Poisoning 237</p> <p>The “Killer Bee” Phenomenon 237</p> <p>What are “killer bees”? 238</p> <p>Bee prepared! 239</p> <p><b>Chapter 11: Colony Collapse Disorder 241</b></p> <p>What is CCD? 242</p> <p>What to Do If You Suspect CCD 243</p> <p>Why All the Fuss? 243</p> <p>What’s Causing CCD? 244</p> <p>The cellphone theory 244</p> <p>It may be the perfect storm 244</p> <p>Answers to FAQs 248</p> <p>What You Can Do to Help 248</p> <p><b>Chapter 12: Keeping Your Bees Healthy 251</b></p> <p>Understanding the Importance of Good Nutrition 252</p> <p>What bees eat 252</p> <p>The need for good gut health 253</p> <p>Taking steps to ensure good nutrition 253</p> <p>Medicating or Not? 254</p> <p>Knowing the Big-Six Bee Diseases 254</p> <p>American foulbrood (AFB) 255</p> <p>European foulbrood (EFB) 256</p> <p>Chalkbrood 257</p> <p>Sacbrood 258</p> <p>Stonebrood 258</p> <p>Nosema 259</p> <p>A handy chart 260</p> <p><b>Chapter 13: Heading Off Honey-Bee Pests 263</b></p> <p>Parasitic Problems 263</p> <p>Varroa mites 264</p> <p>Tracheal mites 271</p> <p>Zombie (Phonid) flies 276</p> <p>Other Unwelcome Pests 276</p> <p>Wax moths 277</p> <p>Small hive beetle 278</p> <p>Ants, ants, and more ants 279</p> <p>Bear alert! 280</p> <p>Raccoons and skunks 281</p> <p>Keeping out Mrs Mouse 282</p> <p>Some birds have a taste for bees 283</p> <p>Pest Control at a Glance 283</p> <p><b>Chapter 14: Raising Your Own Queens 285</b></p> <p>Why Raising Queens is the Bee’s Knees 286</p> <p>Understanding Genetics 287</p> <p>Dominant and recessive genes 287</p> <p>Inbreeding versus outcrossing 288</p> <p>Accentuate the positive 289</p> <p>What Makes a Queen a Queen 291</p> <p>Talking about the Birds and Bees for Honey Bees 292</p> <p>Creating Demand: Making a Queenless Nuc 293</p> <p>Queen-Rearing Method 1: Go with the Flow 294</p> <p>If the queen cells are capped 294</p> <p>If the queen cells are open 294</p> <p>Mind the timeline 295</p> <p>Queen-Rearing Method 2: The Miller Method 296</p> <p>Queen-Rearing Method 3: The Doolittle Method, also Known as Grafting 298</p> <p>Tools and equipment 298</p> <p>How it’s done 301</p> <p>Providing nuptial housing 303</p> <p>Finding Homes for Your Queens 304</p> <p>Evaluating the Results 305</p> <p>The Queen Rearer’s Calendar 306</p> <p>Marking Your Queens 307</p> <p><b>Part 5: Sweet Rewards 309</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 15: Honey, I Love You 311</b></p> <p>Appreciating the History of Honey 311</p> <p>Understanding the Composition of Honey 313</p> <p>Healing with Honey 314</p> <p>Honey and diabetes 314</p> <p>Honey’s nutritional value 315</p> <p>Honey and children 315</p> <p>Choosing Extracted, Comb, Chunk, or Whipped Honey 315</p> <p>Extracted honey 316</p> <p>Comb honey 317</p> <p>Chunk honey 317</p> <p>Whipped honey 317</p> <p>Honeydew honey 318</p> <p>Taking the Terror out of Terroir 318</p> <p>Customizing your honey 319</p> <p>Honey from around the world 320</p> <p>The Commercialization of Honey 324</p> <p>Is it the real deal? 324</p> <p>Raw versus regular honey 325</p> <p>Organic or not? 325</p> <p>Your own honey is the best 325</p> <p>Appreciating the Culinary Side of Honey 326</p> <p>The nose knows 326</p> <p>Practice makes perfect 327</p> <p>Recognizing defects in honey 328</p> <p>Pairing Honey with Food 328</p> <p>Infusing Honey with Flavors 329</p> <p>Judging Honey 329</p> <p>Honey Trivia 330</p> <p><b>Chapter 16: Getting Ready for the Golden Harvest 333</b></p> <p>Having Realistic Expectations 334</p> <p>What Flavor Do You Want? 334</p> <p>Assembling the Right Equipment to Extract Honey 335</p> <p>Honey extractors 335</p> <p>Uncapping knife 336</p> <p>Honey strainer 336</p> <p>Other handy gadgets for extracting honey 337</p> <p>Honey containers 340</p> <p>Planning Your Extracted Honey Harvest Setup 340</p> <p>Gathering Comb Honey Equipment 342</p> <p>Section comb cartridges 342</p> <p>Cut comb 342</p> <p>Branding and Selling Your Honey 342</p> <p>Creating an attractive label 343</p> <p>Finding places to market your honey 346</p> <p>Selling your honey on the web 346</p> <p><b>Chapter 17: Honey Harvest Day 347</b></p> <p>Knowing When to Harvest 348</p> <p>Bad things come to those who wait! 349</p> <p>A few pointers to keep in mind when harvesting liquid gold 350</p> <p>Getting the Bees out of the Honey Supers 351</p> <p>Shakin’ ’em out 352</p> <p>Blowin’ ’em out 353</p> <p>Using a bee escape board 353</p> <p>Fume board and bee repellent 354</p> <p>Honey Extraction from a Langstroth Frame 356</p> <p>Harvesting honey using an extractor 357</p> <p>Cleaning frames after extracting 359</p> <p>Harvesting Honey from Your Top Bar Hive 360</p> <p>Selecting the comb to harvest 360</p> <p>Getting the bees off Top Bar comb 362</p> <p>Harvesting using the crush-and-strain method 362</p> <p>Harvesting honey using a honey press 363</p> <p>Harvesting cut-comb honey 365</p> <p>Harvesting Wax 365</p> <p><b>Part 6: The Part of Tens 367</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 18: More than Ten Fun Things to Do with Bees 369</b></p> <p>Making Two Langstroth Hives from One 369</p> <p>Making One Langstroth Hive from Two 371</p> <p>Dividing a Top Bar Hive into Two Colonies 373</p> <p>Combining Two Top Bar Hive Colonies 375</p> <p>Building an Elevated Hive Stand 376</p> <p>Building materials list 377</p> <p>Cut list 377</p> <p>Planting Flowers for Your Bees 378</p> <p>Asters (aster/callistephus) 379</p> <p>Bachelor’s buttons (Centaurea) 380</p> <p>Bee balm (Monarda) 380</p> <p>Hyssop (Agastache) 380</p> <p>Malva (Malvaceae) 381</p> <p>Mint (Mentha) 381</p> <p>Nasturtium (Tropaeolum minus) 381</p> <p>Poppy (Papaver/Eschscholzia) 381</p> <p>Salvia (Salvia/farinacea-strata/ splendens/officinalis) 382</p> <p>Sunflowers (Helianthus/Tithonia) 382</p> <p>Brewing Mead: The Nectar of the Gods 382</p> <p>Create Cool Stuff with Propolis 385</p> <p>Propolis tincture 386</p> <p>Propolis ointment 386</p> <p>Propolis varnish 387</p> <p>Making Gifts from Beeswax 387</p> <p>Beeswax candles 388</p> <p>Beeswax furniture polish 389</p> <p>Beauty and the Bees 389</p> <p>Use your cappings 390</p> <p>Equipment 390</p> <p>The recipes 391</p> <p>Packaging and labeling 396</p> <p><b>Chapter 19: More than Ten Frequently Asked Questions about Bee Behavior 397</b></p> <p><b>Chapter 20: My Ten Favorite Honey Recipes 403</b></p> <p>Honey Curry Vegetable Dip 405</p> <p>Golden Cornbread 406</p> <p>Honey Picante Chicken Wings 407</p> <p>Apricot Honey Bread 408</p> <p>Asian Honey-Tea Grilled Prawns 409</p> <p>Broiled Scallops with Honey-Lime Marinade 410</p> <p>A Honey of a Chili 411</p> <p>Beef and Potato Tzimmes 412</p> <p>Chewy Honey Oatmeal Cookies 413</p> <p>Apple Honey Tart 414</p> <p><b>Part 7: Appendixes 415</b></p> <p><b>Appendix A: Helpful Resources 417</b></p> <p>Honey Bee Information Websites 417</p> <p>Apiservices — Virtual beekeeping gallery 417</p> <p>The Barefoot Beekeeper 418</p> <p>Beemaster Forum 418</p> <p>Bee-Source.com 418</p> <p>Facebook — Top Bar Beekeeping 418</p> <p>Honey Bee Health Coalition 418</p> <p>Mid-Atlantic Apiculture Research and Extension Consortium (MAARAC) 419</p> <p>National Honey Board 419</p> <p>Bee Organizations and Conferences 419</p> <p>The American Apitherapy Society Inc 420</p> <p>American Beekeeping Federation 420</p> <p>American Honey Producers 420</p> <p>Apiary Inspectors of America 420</p> <p>Apimondia: International Federation of Beekeepers’ Associations 421</p> <p>Eastern Apiculture Society 421</p> <p>Heartland Apicultural Society Inc 422</p> <p>International Bee Research Association 422</p> <p>USDA Agricultural Research Service 422</p> <p>The Western Apiculture Society 423</p> <p>Bee Journals and Magazines 423</p> <p>American Bee Journal 423</p> <p>Bee Culture 424</p> <p>Bee World 425</p> <p>Beekeeping Supplies and Equipment 425</p> <p>Apimaye Insulated Hives 425</p> <p>Barnyard Bees 426</p> <p>Bastin Bees 426</p> <p>Bee-commerce.com 427</p> <p>BeeInventive 427</p> <p>Bee Vital 428</p> <p>Betterbee 428</p> <p>Blue Sky Bee Supply 428</p> <p>Dadant & Sons, Inc 429</p> <p>Glorybee Inc 429</p> <p>Healthy Bee 430</p> <p>Hive Butler 430</p> <p>Hive Tracks 430</p> <p>Hungry Bear Farms 431</p> <p>Kelley Beekeeping 431</p> <p>Mann Lake 431</p> <p>Miller Bee Supply 432</p> <p>Oliverez 432</p> <p>Pierco 433</p> <p>Pigeon Mountain Trading Company 433</p> <p>Rossman Apiaries 433</p> <p>Sacramento Beekeeping Supplies 434</p> <p>Swienty Beekeeping Equipment (EU) 434</p> <p>Thorne Beekeeping Supply (UK) 435</p> <p>Western Bee Supplies 435</p> <p>State Bee Inspectors (United States) 436</p> <p><b>Appendix B: Beekeeper’s Checklist 437</b></p> <p><b>Appendix C: Glossary 441</b></p> <p>Index 449</p>

<p><b>Howland Blackiston</b> has been keeping bees for almost 40 years. He has appeared as an expert on CNBC, CNN, NPR, The Discovery Channel, Sirius Satellite Radio, and other broadcast outlets, and has written numerous articles on beekeeping. Howland has been a keynote speaker at conferences in more than 40 countries.

<ul> <li>Learn the skills to be a successful beekeeper</li> <li>Harvest your own nutritious honey</li> <li>Keep your bees healthy using all-natural methods</li> </ul> <p><b>Be a beekeeper. Help the world.</b> <p>Did you know that bees are responsible for every third or fourth bite of food we eat? Recent years have been extremely tough for bee colonies, so if you've chosen to take up beekeeping, you're making a valuable contribution to the food chain. Fully revised with the latest information, this 5th Edition covers new updates on medications, nutrition, bee health, and winter survival as well as guidance for what you need to do in your first and second seasons. Valuable resources and professional advice help you and your bees succeed! <p><b>Inside...</b> <ul> <li>New beekeeping techniques</li> <li>Advice on nutrition and health</li> <li>The latest about regulations on honey and bee products</li> <li>Best beekeeping practices</li> <li>All about honey production</li> <li>Guidance for your second season</li> <li>Coupons from suppliers</li> </ul>

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