An Absolute Beginner's Guide to Beekeeping From Setting Up Hives to Harvesting Honey

by Morrison, Alethea; Vilaubi, Mars

• ISBN13: 9798897080151
• ISBN10: 8897080154
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2027-01-12
• Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Summary

This easy-to-follow visual guide to the first year of beekeeping includes photographed step-by-step instructions and in-depth discussions of everything a first-time beekeeper needs to know—from understanding bee behavior to harvesting honey. 

Enthusiastic, encouraging, and informative, this one-of-a-kind guide answers all the questions beginners have when they’re first getting started, including: 

• How many hives? 

• When should I install my bees? 

• Where should I put my hives? 

An in-depth overview of the first month guides readers through essential daily and weekly tasks, such as: 

• Hiving the Bees 

• Using a smoker 

• Checking for vital signs 

• Replacing the queen 

Through nine chapters, readers will learn all the basics and go through the seasons to the honey harvest, discovering how honey flows, how to keep bees cool in hot weather, what to do about mites, and how to protect the hives from the wind during cold winters along the way. An in-depth overview of harvesting tools and equipment (and how to use it all) ensures you’ll have jars of homemade honey lining your pantry! 

Author Biography

Alethea Morrison is the author of Homegrown Honey Bees. She lived in San Francisco with her husband, photographer Mars Vilaubi, before stepping into the wild yonder of rural Massachusetts together to raise their son, keep bees and chickens, brew beer, sew clothes, grow heirloom beans, and otherwise slow down to smell the flowers of a handmade life. Their experience raising chickens was chronicled in Chick Days. Morrison founded Common Thread Studios, where she edits and designs books by makers, doers, and artists.  She served as president of the Northern Berkshire Beekeepers Association.

Table of Contents

Preface
Chapter 1: Why Bees?
Chapter 2: What Am I Getting Into?
Chapter 3: Bee Life 101
Chapter 4: How Do I Get Started?
Chapter 5: The Gear
Chapter 6: The First Month
Chapter 7: The First Season
Chapter 8: The First Harvest
Chapter 9: Congratulations or Condolences
Glossary
Appendix: Parasites, Diseases & Ailments
Resources
Index