Howland Blackiston - Beekeeping For Dummies

177 178

178 179

179 180

180 181

181 182

182 183

183 184

184 185

185 186

186 187

187 188

188 189

189 190

190 191

191 192

192 193

193 194

194 195

195 196

196 197

197 198

198 199

199 200

200 201

201 202

202 203

203 204

204 205

205 206

206 207

207 208

208 209

209 210

210 211

211 212

212 213

213 214

214 215

215 216

216 217

217 218

218 219

219 220

220 221

221 222

222 223

223 224

224 225

225 226

226 227

227 228

228 229

229 230

230 231

231 232

232 233

233 234

234 235

235 236

236 237

237 238

238 239

239 240

240 241

241 242

242 243

243 244

244 245

245 246

246 247

247 248

248 249

249 250

250 251

251 252

252 253

253 254

254 255

255 256

256 257

257 258

258 259

259 260

260 261

261 263

262 264

263 265

264 266

265 267

266 268

267 269

268 270

269 271

270 272

271 273

272 274

273 275

274 276

275 277

276 278

277 279

278 280

279 281

280 282

281 283

282 284

283 285

284 286

285 287

286 288

287 289

288 290

289 291

290 292

291 293

292 294

293 295

294 296

295 297

296 298

297 299

298 300

299 301

300 302

301 303

302 304

303 305

304 306

305 307

306 309

307 310

308 311

309 312

310 313

311 314

312 315

313 316

314 317

315 318

316 319

317 320

318 321

319 322

320 323

321 324

322 325

323 326

324 327

325 328

326 329

327 330

328 331

329 333

330 334

331 335

332 336

333 337

334 338

335 339

336 340

337 341

338 342

339 343

340 344

341 345

342 346

343 347

344 348

345 349

346 350

347 351

348 352

349 353

350 354

351 355

352 356

353 357

354 358

355 359

356 360

357 361

358 362

359 363

360 364

361 365

362 366

363 367

364 368

365 369

366 370

367 371

368 372

369 373

370 374

371 375

372 376

373 377

374 378

375 379

376 380

377 381

378 382

379 383

380 384

381 385

382 386

383 387

384 388

385 389

386 390

387 391

388 392

389 393

390 394

391 395

392 396

393 397

394 398

395 399

396 400

397 401

398 402

399 403

400 404

401 405

402 406

403 407

404 408

405 409

406 410

407 411

408 412

409 413

410 414

411 415

412 416

413 417

414 418

415 419

416 420

417 421

418 422

419 423

420 424

421 425

422 426

423 427

424 428

425 429

426 430

427 431

428 432

429 433

430 434

431 435

432 436

433 437

434 438

435 439

436 441

437 442

438 443

439 444

440 445

441 446

442 447

443 449

444 450

445 451

446 452

447 453

448 454

449 455

450 456

451 457

452 458

453 459

454 460

455 461

456 462

457 463

458 464

459 465

460 466

461 467

462 468

463 469

464 470

465 471

466 472

467 473

468 474

469 475

470 476

471 477

472 478

473 479

For many people, the allure of beekeeping is a strong one. Now more than ever, beekeeping is not only enjoyable, fascinating, and rewarding, it is critically important!

There is so much we can learn about our world from keeping bees. As the noted Nobel Prize-winning ethologist Karl Von Frisch wisely said, “The bee's life is like a magic well: The more you draw from it, the more it fills with water.” Beekeeping is indeed a bottomless well of learning and a pastime that leads to years of enjoyment and benefits.

One thing I find particularly rewarding is the connection that beekeeping gives me to the natural world around me. I believe that deep down we all long for this connection to nature. I have found that beekeeping is a wonderful way to achieve this connection. It fosters a respect and curiosity about the myriad interrelated intricacies in the ecosystems that surround us.

We all benefit from having honey bees on the landscape around us. Our flowers, vegetable gardens, and fruit trees benefit from having these intrepid pollinators visit. Indeed, honey bees have become an essential part of our vast agriculture system through their pollination services. We need to maintain a healthy landscape in order for bees to thrive and survive. Our food system literally depends upon it.

The world of beekeeping for hobbyists and professionals alike has changed significantly over the years. Today, successful beekeepers are required to know much more than in the past. They need to monitor their bees more closely and pay close attention to what is happening in the environment around them. It is essential for beekeepers to know about bee nutrition, parasites, pathogens, and the pesticide exposure that the bees might encounter as they forage.

The good news is that along with the challenges, there have been huge advances in our collective knowledge about bees, bee biology, behavior, and genetics. Intensive studies are being done by an enthusiastic field of scientists, university research laboratories, and citizen scientists sharing data from their hives. There is an ever-growing population of people excitedly starting to keep bees around the world, in both backyards and urban environments. They share their experiences in clubs, on the Internet, and via social media. This makes beekeeping even more rewarding and connected than ever before. Farmers, landscapers, and gardeners have made big strides in creating landscapes that are designed to benefit all pollinators as we learn that healthy and balanced “farmscapes” as well as landscapes are more important objectives than having giant lush green lawns.

Beekeeping For Dummies has kept up with the many advances and innovations in beekeeping. This fifth edition is an important one. Inside the book you will find a lot of new information about honey bee nutrition and health. This edition brings the latest knowledge from the labs to our backyards. Plus, there are many tried-and-true techniques and a wealth of essential beekeeping fundamentals.

By now, most people know that bees and pollinators of all types are under threat. Beekeeping is an important part of a multifaceted solution for helping save our pollinators. We need to reduce our pesticide use, plant diverse forage, support our local farmers, and educate our children and our legislators about ensuring pollinator-friendly habitats. By keeping bees responsibly, you will be doing your part.

In my own 30-plus years of backyard beekeeping I have continually learned from fellow beekeepers, books, articles, and, of course, from my mentors.

Beekeeping For Dummies, 5th Edition, fills all of these roles with a balanced combination of concise and accurate information; helpful tips; thoughtful, enthusiastic encouragement; and a sincere and heartfelt admiration for honey bees. Howland Blackiston’s deep love and respect for honey bees shines through on the pages of this latest edition of Beekeeping For Dummies .