The Backyard Beekeeper, 5th Edition: An Absolute Beginner's Guide to Keeping Bees in Your Yard and Garden – Natural beekeeping techniques – New Varroa mite and American foulbrood treatm

Enjoy the time-honored tradition of beekeeping in your own backyard or urban rooftop with this accessible resource for beekeepers of all skill levels, now in its 5th edition. More than a guide to beekeeping, The Backyard Beekeeper features expert advice for: Setting up and caring for your own colonies Selecting the best location to place your new bee colonies for their safety and yours The most practical and nontoxic ways to care for your bees Swarm control Using top bar hives Harvesting the products of a beehive and collecting and using honey Bee problems and treatments New in this edition: Natural beekeeping techniques like insulating hives for the winter to mimic the advantages of bee homes in the wild Important new treatments for and updated info on the battle with Varroa mites Introduction to new recordkeeping technology to consider In addition to content updates to reflect the most recent research and technology in beekeeping, the book features a new design with larger, easier-to-read text, many new photos, and a more easily navigable structure. With this complete reference and the expert advice of Bee Culture editor emeritus Kim Flottum, your bees will be healthy, happy, and more productive.

Table of Contents:
PrefaceIntroduction       In the Beginning       Evolution: Moving On CHAPTER 1: Starting Right       Getting Started       Beeyards Other Than Your Backyard       Extreme Urban Beekeeping       The Right Tools of the Trade       And Yes, the Right Bees CHAPTER 2: About Those Bees       Queens       Workers       Drones       Seasonal Changes CHAPTER 3: About Beekeeping Review and Preparation Lighting Your Smoker       Package Management Keeping Records Opening a Colony Honeycomb and Brood Combs Summertime Chores Fall and Winter Management Early Next Spring Inspections CHAPTER 4: About Honey Honey Flow Time Honey Harvest Time       Uncapping, Extracting, Bottling Honey Comb Honey and Cut Comb Honey CHAPTER 5: Maladies, Problems, and Solutions IPM Fundamentals Varroa Nosema Chalkbrood European Foulbrood American Foulbrood Wax Moth Small Hive Beetle Other Pests CHAPTER 6: Beeswax       Be Safe       Melting Beeswax       Using Beeswax CHAPTER 7: 25 Rules of Modern Beekeeping       Queen's Rules       Bees' Rules       Beekeeping Rules       Varroa Rules       Beekeeper Rules Glossary Resources Photographer Credits About the Author Acknowledgments Index

About the Author :
Kim Flottum brings a rich background of plant science, honeybee research, and basic farming to his 30 years as the editor of Bee Culture magazine, where his main occupation has been finding the answers to the multitude of questions that beginning, intermediate, and even advanced and experienced beekeepers bring to the table. He teaches beginning and advanced beekeeping courses, travels extensively to educate and lecture, and contributes to a variety of other publications on the basics of honey bees and beekeeping biology, the business of bees and pollination, producing and using varietal honeys, and a host of other subjects.  He is the author of The Backyard Beekeeper, First Time Beekeeping, In Business with Bees, and Common Sense Natural Beekeeping. His books, magazine articles, interviews, and blogs are widely read for both their fundamental and advanced contribution to beekeeping knowledge. He is beekeeping's leading advocate for fundamental honey bee safety, including insuring excellent honey bee health, providing extraordinary forage, and minimizing the use of agricultural pesticides.

Review :
What a great resource! Novice and experienced beekeepers alike will find The Backyard Beekeeper to be the perfect reference book. It is well laid out and easy to understand. I especially loved the "Rules of Modern Beekeeping." I plan to put the list of rules in my honey house to act as daily reminders.--Petra Ahnert, Founder of Beehive Alchemy and bestselling author of Beeswax Alchemy