1. Top-bar hives
2. The supercreature
3. Beekeeping basics
4. Hive management
5. The seasons
6. Honey, beeswax, and other products
7. Evaluating your queen
8. Problem-solving
9. Raising queens
10. Planting for bees
The Authors: Les Crowder has devoted his entire adult life to the study and care of honeybees. He designed his own top-bar hives and set about discovering how to treat disease and genetic weaknesses through plant medicine and selective breeding. He has served as New Mexico's honeybee inspector and president of the New Mexico Beekeepers Association. Heather Harrell has been an organic farmer, and through her work with honeybees she has moved her focus to the study of multi-use permaculture plantings, which support a diverse network of interrelationships in the natural world.
ForeWord Reviews-
"Farmers who seek a guide to hive maintenance told through a
thoughtful personal narrative will benefit from the discussion of
this topbar style of beekeeping. The first-person style of the book
allows a window into the practices of the topbar beekeeper while
conveying a wealth of knowledge and a well-researched comparison of
hive practices. The book is appropriate for beginning beekeepers as
well as those experienced but looking for information on natural
and organic beekeeping practices. The book’s ten sections discuss
optimal practices of an organic beekeeper juxtaposed with
discussion of industry standard practices and their drawbacks. Each
section contains stories of the authors’ successes and failures as
well as diagrams and pictures to explain everything from hive
design to plant species for optimal pollination. Whether the reader
is looking to start their own hive or simply increase their
knowledge of honeybees, the book provides interesting and detailed
discussions of all aspects of raising them. Crowder and Harrell
offer not only advice on how to get started, but an in-depth
discussion of all aspects of keeping a hive, from bee capture,
breeding, and selection to honey processing. They have crafted a
book that is both informative and engaging, filled with
introspective advice and practical knowledge."
Publisher's Weekly-
"Cave drawings show beekeepers “smoking” their hives, preparing for
insect interaction. Today’s mass-produced honey relies mostly on
the venerable Langstroth method of beekeeping, which has produced
plenty of honey—but also has introduced plenty of chemicals into
the process—through the years. Top-bar hives, named for the bars
that run across their tops, are popular with bee beginners even
though they produce less honey than Langstroth hives. But this
account, the culmination of Crowder and Harrell’s 40 years of
top-bar beekeeping adventures, shows the reader their method’s
advantages: it avoids antibiotics, miticides, and other chemicals
inherent to the conventional process. Crowder and his wife,
Harrell, leave no comb unharvested as they take the top-bar
aspirant from bee basics (stings, smoke, and hive transfers)
through hive management (comb removal and feeding) to beneficial,
and profitable, byproducts like beeswax. For those a bit lukewarm
to the swarm, the book gives a fascinating insight into bees’
elaborate organizational and geometry skills, and it may even make
one reconsider buying mass-marketed, chemical-laced honey."
"Reading Top-Bar Beekeeping reminds me of the classes I took with
Les Crowder several years ago. He's a man who truly knows whereof
he speaks, who has the gift of communicating with his small
friends, the bees, and sharing his understanding with us. . . .
This is the one book on beekeeping that I will recommend to my
permaculture students."--Scott Pittman, Director, Permaculture
Institute USA
"This is an excellent guide for hobby beekeepers who wish to keep
bees using top-bar hives. Drawing on his more than 30 years of
beekeeping experience in New Mexico, author Les Crowder describes
in detail the special comb management techniques that this
low-cost, but relatively intensive, 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 D. Seeley, Cornell
University; author of Honeybee Democracy and The Wisdom of the
Hive
"This book presents practical advice, gained from first-hand
experience, on the organic management of top bar hives. This book
will serve as an excellent guide to the ever-growing number of
beekeepers that utilizes less intrusive management schemes such as
top bar hives. Thanks to Les and Heather for their efforts to
provide sound advice on natural ways to keep bees."--Dr. Jeff
Pettis, USDA-ARS
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