The ABC & XYZ of Bee Culture: An Encyclopedia Pertaining to the Scientific and Practical Culture of Honey Bees

The 41st Edition of The ABC & XYZ Of Bee Culture has over 900 pages and more than 1,000 photos. Most photos are color, but many are black and white because of the extensive array of historical topics, people and events that are covered...here and nowhere else. Constructed as an easy to use and comprehensive encyclopedia of honey bees, beekeeping and beekeeping practices and equipment, the alphabetical listings cover absolutely everything in the beekeeping world. From African Honey Bees, to beeswax, to comb honey, to G. M. Doolittle, to essential oils, to Karl von Frisch, to Extracted Honey, to more than 50 of the most popular honey plants to laying workers, to honey bee mites, to nucleus colonies, to Queen piping and Queen rearing, to the A. I. Root Company History, to smoking colonies, to Top Bar Hives, to Varroa, to wintering to worker cells. The 16 page Glossary is easy to use, and contains hundreds of entries to make learning the science, and art of beekeeping easier and faster than you can imagine. And nowhere anywhere is there a more comprehensive listing of the people and events that make up the history of keeping bees. Hundreds of individuals are highlighted, noting their contributions to the beekeeping community...from L. L. Langstroth to modern day queen And, because of the extensive role the A. I. Root Company played in American, and even global beekeeping development, a comprehensive overview of the family, the manufacturing advances, and the contributions made by the family, and the company, are spelled out in detail not before shared. More than 50 authors were pulled in to assist with this work, each contributing the most up-to-date information in their respective fields. These were so skillfully edited by Dr.Shimanuki, Ann Harman, and Kim Flottum that the contributions mesh perfectly, with none being too complicated, and none being too simple. Ann Harman s fact checking was extensive, and the accuracy of the information is, considering the volume of material, a tribute to the dedication of all of the authors, editors and publishers. The science of honey bees and beekeeping certainly are on display in this work, but so too are the many entries that focus on demonstrating practical beekeeping skills and information. Everything from how to lay out a small, medium or large honey house and what equipment to choose, to how to equalize colonies, to assembling equipment, to judging honey for show, to instrumental insemination, to making mead, to making nucs, to collecting pollen, to rearing queens, to harvesting honey, to lighting and keeping lit, smokers. A wealth of beekeeping how-to exists alongside the science of beekeeping that supports why beekeepers do things the way they do. This book is both a handy reference to see how something is done, why it is done that way, the science behind the actions, and the history of how beekeeping got to where it is today. It is indispensible, too, as a jumping off place when you want to find out more, but simply didn t know where to start. Often called The Beekeeper s Bible , The ABC & XYZ Of Bee Culture should be on every beekeeper s shelf....for emergencies, for background, and for fun.