Did you know that almost 90% of wild plants and 75% of leading global crops depend on animal pollination? Almost ⅓ of the food we eat is pollinated by bees! Backyard beekeeping is a great way to help out the local ecosystem and have fun while doing it! Not to mention you can harvest your own delicious honey!!
Just getting started? The UF/IFAS Honey Bee Research And Extension Lab is an amazing place to begin your beekeeping journey!
The Honey Bee Research and Extension Lab has Bee College (!!!) every August for beekeepers of all experience levels to learn from the state’s experts. There is even a Master Beekeeper Program, and for less intense studying, bee-Learning Short Courses are offered as well.
The Bee Lab is open for tours on the first Wednesday of every month, so check back with the Lab for upcoming events. Be sure to look through the Beekeeper Resources after you listen to their TWO BEES IN A PODCAST!
- Beginners!
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The Beekeeper’s Handbook
By Diana Sammataro and Alphonse AvitabileThe fourth edition of this comprehensive beekeeper's handbook provides new and updated information throughout including new information on important contemporary issues such as Colony Collapse Disorder, Africanized honey bees, and bee mite control. Packed with detailed illustrations and step-by-step instructions, this guide provides beginner and experienced beekeepers with the fundamentals of bee theory as well as practical information on hive construction, obtaining bees, feeding, seasonal management and honey and pollen harvesting procedures. The work includes useful sidebars throughout as well as a large section of web and print resource recommendations on a wide variety of beekeeping and related topics. The authors are specialists in entomology and biology.
Do Beekeeping: The Secret to Happy Honey Bees
By Orren FoxBy sharing the journey of 18-year-old beekeeper Orren Fox -- who clearly remembers what it's like to be a rookie -- you'll discover that keeping your own honeybees is easier than you think.
Beekeeping for Dummies
By Howland BlackistonThis practical guide presents a step-by-step approach to starting your own beehive, along with expert tips for maintaining a healthy colony. You get the latest on honey bee medication and treatments, harvesting and marketing your honey, and the impact the sudden disappearance of the honey bee has on our environment and economy.
Natural Beekeeping: Organic Approaches to Modern Apiculture
By Ross ConradOffers an alternative to conventional chemical beekeeping practices with a natural hive management program, and includes information on bee anatomy, urban beekeeping, working with queens, mite control, and hive diseases.
The Backyard Beekeeper – An Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Keeping Bees in Your Yard and Garden
By Kim FlottumThe Backyard Beekeeper, now in its 4th edition, makes the time-honored and complex tradition of beekeeping an enjoyable and accessible backyard pastime that will appeal to urban and rural beekeepers of all skill levels. More than a guide to beekeeping, this handbook features expert advice for: setting up and caring for your own colonies, the most practical and nontoxic ways to care for your bees, and collecting and using honey, among other things. With this complete resource and the expert advice of Bee Culture editor Kim Flottum, your bees will be healthy, happy, and more productive.
The Beginner's Guide To Beekeeping: Everything You Need To Know: Choosing Bees, Equipment, Health And Care, Harvest, Recipes
By Daniel JohnsonBeginning with the basics, seasoned beekeepers Daniel and Samantha Johnson answer all of a prospective beekeeper’s questions on how to set up, care for, and harvest their very own bee colonies. With the help of this comprehensive DIY guide, raising bees can be an enjoyable and accessible backyard pastime for gardeners, crafters, and cooks everywhere.
- Advanced!
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Beekeeper’s Problem Solver (100 Common Problems Explored and Explained)
By James E. TewAn illustrated guide to 100 common problems beekeepers are sure to face, all spelled out in clear, simple terms. Learn the underlying issues and how to solve them. Only available as an eBook - check our Libby app.
Honeybee Democracy
By Thomas D. SeeleyAn impressive exploration of animal behavior, Honeybee Democracy shows that decision-making groups, whether honeybee or human, can be smarter than even the smartest individuals in them.
The Buzz About Bees: Biology Of A Superorganism
By Jürgen TautzWith spectacularly beautiful color photographs, this easily understandable text tells the story of honeybees in a new perspective. Based on the latest data, notably from his own research group, Jürgen Tautz provides a wonderful insight into the realm of bees.
- Speciality!
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Beeswax Alchemy (How To Make Your Own Candles, Soap, Balms, Salves And Home Décor From The Hive)
By Petra AhnertOffers a basic introduction to the art of extracting and purifying beeswax, as well as countless ideas for what to make with it. These include skin care creams, candles, and other home products like beeswax ornaments and wax fabric.
Beehive Alchemy : Projects And Recipes Using Honey, Beeswax Propolis And Pollen To Make Your Own Soap, Candles, Creams, Salves, And More
By Petra AhnertBeehive Alchemy is a continuation of Petra Ahnert's best-selling Beeswax Alchemy. With this new book, beekeepers (and bee lovers) will learn about the benefits and attributes of beeswax, honey, propolis, and more alongside a full range of projects and techniques to process and harness the amazing gifts of bees. Inside, you'll find instructions to make Ahnert's award-winning hand-dipped birthday candles, the classic French dessert canele bordelais, and much more!
- Good Reads!
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The Lives Of Bees : The Untold Story Of The Honey Bee In The Wild
By Thomas D SeeleySeeley, a world authority on honey bees, sheds light on why wild honey bees are still thriving while those living in managed colonies are in crisis. Drawing on the latest science as well as insights from his own pioneering fieldwork, he describes in extraordinary detail how honey bees live in nature and shows how this differs significantly from their lives under the management of beekeepers. Seeley presents an entirely new approach to beekeeping, known as Darwinian beekeeping, which enables honey bees to use the toolkit of survival skills their species has acquired over the past thirty million years, and to evolve solutions to the new challenges they face today. He shows beekeepers how to use the principles of natural selection to guide their practices, and he offers a new vision of how beekeeping can better align with the natural habits of honey bees.
Bee People And The Bugs They Love
By Frank MortimerMortimer invites readers on an eye-opening journey into the secret world of bees-- and the singular world of his fellow bee-keepers. In connecting with a club of disparate but kindred spirits, he discovers the centuries-old history of the trade, what bees see, think, and feel, how they talk to each other and socialize, and lastly, what can be done to combat their biggest threats, both human and mite. Mortimer delivers an informative, funny, and galvanizing book about the symbiotic relationship between flower and bee, and bee and the beekeepers who are determined to protect the existence of one of the most beguiling and invaluable creatures on earth
