Table of Contents

1. Why organic beekeeping?
2. Working with the hive
3. Hive management
4. Genetics and breeding
5. Parasitic mites
6. Insect pests
7. Four-legged and feathered pests
8. Environmental and human threats
9. Hive diseases
10. The honey harvest
11. Marketing
12. Organics and the evolution of beekeeping

About the Author

Ross Conrad learned his craft from the late Charles Mraz, world-renowned beekeeper and founder of Champlain Valley Apiaries in Vermont. Former president of the Vermont Beekeepers Association, Conrad is a regular contributor to Bee Culture—The Magazine of American Beekeeping. He has led bee-related presentations and taught organic beekeeping workshops and classes throughout North America for many years. His small beekeeping business, Dancing Bee Gardens, supplies friends, neighbors, and local stores with honey and candles, among other bee related products, and provides bees for Vermont apple-pollination in spring.

Gary Paul Nabhan is an internationally celebrated nature writer, food and farming activist, and proponent of conserving the links between biodiversity and cultural diversity. He holds the W.K. Kellogg Endowed Chair in Sustainable Food Systems at the University of Arizona Southwest Center, where he works with students, faculty, and non-profits to build a more just, nutritious, sustainable, and climate-resilient foodshed spanning the US/Mexico border. He’s also the author of numerous books, including Growing Food in a Hotter, Drier Land, Renewing America’s Food Traditions, and Chasing Chiles. He lives in southern Arizona.

Reviews

“Natural Beekeeping is a wonderful book, beautifully written and illustrated, about how one can have healthy hives of bees without using synthetic pesticides, antibiotics, or artificial diets.  Ross Conrad explains in fine detail that the key ingredients of organic beekeeping are disease-resistant stock, favorable apiary sites, and good colony management, plus a reverence and respect for the bees.”--Thomas D. Seeley, Cornell University, author of Honeybee Democracy and The Wisdom of the Hive

Library Journal- "Originally published in 2007 as colony collapse disorder was making headlines across the world, this updated edition by veteran beekeeper Conrad (former president, Vermont Beekeepers Assn.) is a holistic reference guide to organic apiculture. While newer parasites like varroa mites are making chemical treatments a normal part of hive ownership, many people are still looking for ways to manage their hives organically in order to reduce the amount of chemicals that affect bees, other pollinators, and the environment in general. This new edition adds information about urban beekeeping, top-bar hives, and marketing for those interested in selling honey and other products from their beehives. A comprehensive glossary and resource list will assist novice and experienced apiarists searching for equipment, mite-resistant bee suppliers, and pesticide testing and reporting agencies. VERDICT Conrad’s personal experiences and easy tone and the wealth of information make this title perfect for beekeepers looking for more natural hive management options. Highly recommended for purchase wherever urban farming is taking root."