Top-Bar Beekeeping: Organic Practices for Honeybee Health

Price: $29.95 - $16.76
(as of Oct 11, 2026 16:39:19 UTC – Details)


Top-Bar Beekeeping is an offering designed to encourage beekeepers around the world to keep bees naturally by providing beekeeping basics, hive management and the utilization of top-bar hives.
In recent years, beekeepers have had to face tremendous challenges, from pests, such as varroa and tracheal mites, to the mysterious but even more devastating phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). Yet in backyards and on rooftops all over the world, bees are being raised successfully, even without antibiotics, miticides, or other chemical inputs. More and more organically-minded beekeepers are now using top-bar hives, in which the shape of the interior resembles a hollow log. Long lasting and completely biodegradable, a top-bar hive made of untreated wood allows bees to build comb naturally rather than simply filling prefabricated foundation frames in a typical box hive with added supers.
Top-bar hives yield slightly less honey but produce more beeswax than a typical Langstroth box hive. Regular hive inspection and the removal of old combs helps to keep bees healthier and naturally disease-free.
Top-Bar Beekeeping provides complete information on hive management and other aspects of using these innovative hives. All home and hobbyist beekeepers who have the time and interest in keeping bees intensively should consider the natural, low-stress methods outlined in this book. It will also appeal to home orchardists, gardeners, and permaculture practitioners who look to bees for pollination as well as honey or beeswax.
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Chelsea Green
Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 16, 2012
Edition ‏ : ‎ 39864th
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1603584617
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1603584616
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.99 x 0.46 x 8.98 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #253,176 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #145 in Biology of Insects & Spiders #216 in Animal Husbandry (Books) #551 in Sustainable Living
Customer Reviews: 4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars (493) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers find this beekeeping book wonderfully informative and highly recommend it as the best resource for top-bar beekeeping. The book is easy to read and well-written, with great pictures and illustrations throughout. They appreciate its natural approach to beekeeping and consider it worth the price, with one customer noting it’s less expensive to start up in beekeeping. Customers enjoy reading it, with one mentioning they will read it multiple times.