BBKA Forum

British Beekeepers Association Official Forum 

  • Can you recommend beekeping books/further reading for a novice

  • Beginners forum, ask beekeeping related questions and get help from other experienced beekeepers. Please use the Search Feature please to avoid duplicated threads
Beginners forum, ask beekeeping related questions and get help from other experienced beekeepers. Please use the Search Feature please to avoid duplicated threads
 #7356  by Steve 1972
 24 May 2020, 09:37
The Buzz about Bees. Biology of a Superorganism by Jürgen Tautz..not so much about beekeeping...more to do with biology and behavior.. i have not read the full book but what i have read is very interesting..it opened my eyes to how special these little insects really are..
 #7359  by AndrewLD
 24 May 2020, 11:58
For a second year beekeeper, I think the Haynes Bee manual is still an excellent choice and it was my go-to book for the first three/four years especially for the clear explanation and graphics for things like swarming!
I had Clive de Bruyn's Practical beekeeping from the outset but I think it will mean more in a year or so. The BBKA book is in my view poorly organised with information all over the place.
There are lots of good beekeeping books and I enjoy finding "new" ones to read in the second-hand bookshops such as they have in towns and NT properties. Avoid titles such as the Golden Hoard (flowery language) but if you could get a copy of Kenneth K Clark's Beekeeping (1951?) it's a real gem and I see there are two copies available on Amazon for around £10 - £12 - clearest explanation of swarming and NUC use I have yet found.
 #7363  by NigelP
 24 May 2020, 13:02
I would highly recommend "Swarming. It's control and prevention" by Snelgrove. Whilst he didn't understand the real reasons behind swarming he got the methodology just about spot on. Not only does it cover His own methods (perhaps in a little too much detail) he also covers several other methods of swarm control or prevention, like demaree, Simmins and others I'd never heard of.