Hive Management A Seasonal Guide for Beekeepers

About this book

Enjoy a thriving hive and plenty of delicious honey. This practical guide to beekeeping stresses practices that are based on an understanding of the intimate lives, behaviors, and motivations of honey bees. You'll learn proven methods for inspecting your hives, troubleshooting problems, introducing a new queen, collecting honey, and dealing with swarms. Whether you're starting your first hive or are tending to dozens of them, Richard Bonney's clear advice and expert insights will help make your beekeeping operation a success.

Contents

Preface

1 Initial Inspection
2 Spring Management
3 Swarming
4 The Queen
5 Making Increase
6 Life of a Worker
7 Supering
8 Hive Inspections
9 Comb Honey
10 Foraging
11 Summertime
12 Late Season Management
13 Taking the Crop
14 Fall Preparation
15 Equipment
16 Feeding
17 Pollination

Appendix
Diseases, Mites and Africanized Bees
Additional Reading
Index

Customer Reviews

Biography

Veteran beekeeper Richard E. Bonney, author of Hive Management, Beekeeping, and co-author of Storey's Guide to Keeping Honey Bees, was the longtime owner of Charlemont Apiaries in Charlemont, Massachusetts.