Beekeeping books

[irishguy]

Just as the title says, im looking to buy another few beekeeping books and would like some recommendations on what to buy. I did a search in amazon and first one came up is haynes bee manual. Going to buy this buy what others should i purchase

 

[Midland Beek]

Are Northern Bee Books still going?

Depends what you are into. Queen rearing/making increase or woodwork/DIY or general beekeeping, etc.

The fera Managing Varroa handbook is worth reading. Available to download in PDF, I think.

 

[Summerslease]

My 'bibles' are Hooper's and de Bruyn's books. I agree re NBB- it has a great catalogue.

 

[yeogi75]

Here is a good one, it'll give you some information on what's going on in the hive without opening the hive.
At The Hive Entrance by H.Storch.
And its free, Look for free books on the internet they might be old but still worth reading.

Or look back at some previous posts to get some ideas then go and read up about them.

 

[pargyle]

This has been worked over many times on the forum .... Fairly regular question for beginners.

Start here and you will find other threads ... very comprehenive list of books that people prefer with some good pointers to what are good and what are not so good.

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=30086

and here:

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=25234

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Just as the title says, im looking to buy another few beekeeping books and would like some recommendations on what to buy. I did a search in amazon and first one came up is haynes bee manual. Going to buy this buy what others should i purchase

Ted Hoopers book is my major source. You can also gain a lot from Dave Cushman's works via Google

 

[yeogi75]

I agree Gj, but you can glean some from YouTube as well.
But don't copy most of it until you have read a bit, as they have a lot of errors on there like taking frames from the middle and you can see the bees being rolled, just be careful of what you copy.

ps there are some videos on here check them out

 

[kazmcc]

Yep, Ted Hooper and H. Storch are very good books to start with. I'm looking for my next favourite bee book, so will be watching your thread with interest

 

[pargyle]

Yep, Ted Hooper and H. Storch are very good books to start with. I'm looking for my next favourite bee book, so will be watching your thread with interest

I'm not sold on Hooper ...it's a must have bookshelf book that often has the answer but it's not what I would describe as a book you can sit and read. The indexing in my edition is pretty awful and it's written in the language of my Grandad (whilst I cope with it I'm not sure that a lot of younger people would). Yes ... essential ... but what the OP was looking for was the next step on from Beekeeping for Dummies ... which is probably (as he has already surmised) the Haynes Manual. If you follow the Haynes Manual it's a very easy (if a little basic) systemised book to use. Get Hooper, put it on the shelf and when the Haynes book hasn't got the answer Hooper probably will have .. apart from Varroa that is !!

 

[Gilberdyke John]

I agree Gj, but you can glean some from YouTube as well.
But don't copy most of it until you have read a bit, as they have a lot of errors on there like taking frames from the middle and you can see the bees being rolled, just be careful of what you copy.

ps there are some videos on here check them out

There are "some" good items on youtube but sadly far outweighed by dross

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

There's not a lot wrong with Hooper for anyone who reads regularly. (Not everyone does.) However, I'd look for more up to date stuff about diseases and their management.

I'm really enjoying Winston - The Biology of the Honeybee. It may have been published in 1987, but it's a mine of information. However, you would have to be selective about the detail, as it could be a bit brain frying.

St John Chrysostom wrote some interesting things about bees, but is a bit dated as his last writing was c.407BC. He lacks any serious discussion about varroa and it's management.

Dusty

 

[kazmcc]

I'm not sold on Hooper ...it's a must have bookshelf book that often has the answer but it's not what I would describe as a book you can sit and read. The indexing in my edition is pretty awful and it's written in the language of my Grandad (whilst I cope with it I'm not sure that a lot of younger people would). Yes ... essential ... but what the OP was looking for was the next step on from Beekeeping for Dummies ... which is probably (as he has already surmised) the Haynes Manual. If you follow the Haynes Manual it's a very easy (if a little basic) systemised book to use. Get Hooper, put it on the shelf and when the Haynes book hasn't got the answer Hooper probably will have .. apart from Varroa that is !!

I agree, it is pretty hard to read, but it covers everything ( except varroa ) so would still recommend it. I haven't heard of the Haynes manual for bees! Must look out for that. I'm looking for a new bee book, going to borrow Dusty's latest read when he has finished it

If you want a little light relief I'd suggest The Bad Beekeepers Club, by Bill Turnbull. I enjoyed it, but it's not going to tell you anything about beekeeping. Some good anecdotes, that's all, but I liked it.

 

[Spikedog]

Another Hooper fan here - De Bruyn also ok if not awkward in hard back. I have recommended previously Cramp's Bee Keeper's Field Guide - A pocket Guide which I and others have found very informative and a handy size to work with - possibly not for in-depth winter reading but a practical manual.

 

[thorn]

Hooper has a lot of useful information, but the major problem with it, in the edition I have, is the size of the print and the layout. It make it hard to read.

 

[itma]

This has been worked over many times on the forum .... Fairly regular question for beginners.

Start here and you will find other threads ... very comprehenive list of books that people prefer with some good pointers to what are good and what are not so good.

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=30086

and here:

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=25234

And I'm sure quite a lot of forum users would be unaware that there actually was a specific section of the forum on … books!

 

[BeeJayBee]

I'm not sold on Hooper ...it's a must have bookshelf book that often has the answer but it's not what I would describe as a book you can sit and read. The indexing in my edition is pretty awful and it's written in the language of my Grandad (whilst I cope with it I'm not sure that a lot of younger people would). Yes ... essential ... but what the OP was looking for was the next step on from Beekeeping for Dummies ... which is probably (as he has already surmised) the Haynes Manual. If you follow the Haynes Manual it's a very easy (if a little basic) systemised book to use. Get Hooper, put it on the shelf and when the Haynes book hasn't got the answer Hooper probably will have .. apart from Varroa that is !!

Haynes Manual is excellent for beginners, with bite-sized chunks of information and good illustrations. It's written for the UK market too.

Read Hooper in the winter, if you must, but it's hard to refer to in a hurry because the indexing is poor.

 

[oliver90owner]

Beginners note. I read between the lines on posts. I look back at past threads/posts to look for continuity or other facets. The real facts are usually there to be gleaned.

If I were to make a thread like this, I would have started with 'I have x, y and z books already, so what other books would you recommend'

That would be, of course , if I actually had some already. This thread does not really reinforce what the poster has occasionally claimed, and reinforces my view of a distinct lack of preparation for actually keeping bees.

Better late than never, mind. I won't recommend - as most of mine are older tomes - but I will say that reading/using Hooper, as a reference, is hard work.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Best source for information on swarming?

(Those smart Alec's who were about to say, "The bees", need not reply.)

Dusty

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I'm looking for a new bee book, going to borrow Dusty's latest read when he has finished it

May take some time - but if I remember correctly, not much knowledge on beekeeping in the Beano

 

[kazmcc]

May take some time - but if I remember correctly, not much knowledge on beekeeping in the Beano

I think I interrupted him reading it when I called yesterday heh heh