NORTHERN BEE BOOKS

This title is a significant addition to the beekeeping literature on Integrated Bee Health Management. David Aston, Vice Chair of the BBKA and Sally Bucknall, Chair of Garden Organic have jointly written a volume that should be on every beekeepers reading list. Others agree as this review from the Nottinghamshire newsletter shows. This book by Dr. David Aston and Dr. Sally Bucknall could well turn out to be the book of the decade(or 21st century , take your pick).It is packed full of relevant practical information backed up by sufficient theory to suit the purists. It is easy to read and the layout cannot be faulted. Everything, and I mean everything, a budding beekeeper or one with many years experience, needs to know is here. It should be on every beekeeper’s bookshelf. The publisher and both distinguished authors should be congratulated for bringing this splendid volume to us at a relatively low price.

Queen bee. Worker bees. Busy as a bee. These phrases have shaped perceptions of women for centuries, but how did these stereotypes begin? Who are the women who keep bees and what can we learn from them? This examines the fascinating evolution of the relationship between women and bees around the world. From Africa to Australia to Asia, women have participated in the pragmatic aspects of honey hunting and in the more advanced skills associated with beekeeping.

This is one of the great beekeeping books of all time. Manley draws on his commercial experience to explain all aspects of beekeeping. This is a book which is a joy to read, you read it, then reread it. As your experience improves you will understand more & more of the value of Manley’s words. Strongly recommended.

With so much information available on diseases and health related matters, today’s beekeepers are in danger of becoming overwhelmed. The aim of this book is to help beekeepers establish healthy honeybee colonies, assess their condition and take appropriate action, Diseases are dealt with in a concise format to improve readability and are referenced to the latest peer reviewed research. The book emphasises the importance of proper set up involving an integrated approach to health management, in effect a preventive system that comes at little extra cost to the beekeeper.

Modern commercial beekeeping has changed from primarily honey production to crop pollination. With this change has come extraordinary stress–colonies are moved multiple times a year, increasing their exposure to diseases, parasites, and hive pests. Antibiotics and acaricides are being applied more frequently, resulting in resistance and comb contamination. The future use of bee colonies as mobile pollinator populations requires modern management methods with fresh perspectives on nutrition, breeding practices, and the role of microbes in sustaining colony health.

These notes are of use for beekeepers contemplating entering the BBKA Basic Certificate, SBKA Basic Beemasters Certificate and the FIBKA Preliminary Certificate. Each part of the syllabus for the exams are addressed and the notes, should cover everything that the Examiner is likely to ask the Candidate

‘This is an excellent guide for hobby beekeepers who wish to keep bees using top-bar hives. Drawing on his more than thirty years of beekeeping experience in New Mexico, author Les Crowder describes in detail the special comb-management techniques that this low-cost, but relatively intense, form of beekeeping requires. Top- Bar Beekeeping also provides an eloquent appeal for beekeepers to make care, respect, and reverence the foundation of their relationships with the bees.’ – Thomas Seeley, Cornell University

Established along with European settlers, honey bees are an essential part of the landscape. Yet, how do we define a honey bee? And how does the honey bee accomplish the many tasks that aid not only the survival of the colony but our own as well? In Honey-Maker:

• How honey bees set up house, manage a vegetarian lifestyle, and make a beeline
• What honey bees do to warm and cool the beehive
• How honey bees make beeswax, honey, and bee bread
• Why honey bees are in our gardens and how they tell other bees the way to get there
• How the honey bee is related to other insects-and to us

“I didn’t think there was another way to write a book about bees …. This one should be on your shelf.” – Kim Flottum, Editor, Bee Culture Magazine