CHAPTER ONE BEEKEEPING BASICS
I don't know how to start beekeeping
I'm unsure when is best to start beekeeping
I don't know where to get my first bees
I'm concerned that my apiary is in a poor site
My new bees arrived during a cool, rainy period
Beekeeping equipment is expensive
I'm not sure how to buy an established colony
My next-door neighbours are afraid of bees
CHAPTER THREE BIOLOGY AND BEHAVIOUR OF THE COLONY
My bees seem to sting more often than is normal
A swarm has clustered beneath the parent hive
Some bees were crushed during a hive examination
There are few eggs and larvae in the brood nest
There is cross comb on the foundation inserts
The bees keep scouring the hive entrance
Some capped brood cells have small openings
Healthy bees are lying dead in front of the hive
The brood combs have turned heavy and dark
My bees are aggressive towards garden machinery
CHAPTER TWO BEEKEEPING EQUIPMENT
My hive equipment doesn't match
I'm concerned about hive equipment theft
The paint finish on my hives is failing
The inner cover of the hive is glued down
Plastic hives accumulate water during winter
Beeswax foundation is difficult to install
I don't have the right tool to open up the hive
The queen excluder is disrupting colony function
My bee gloves make hive work difficult
The beehive smoker will not stay lit
The handles on my bee boxes are inadequate
A hand trolley loaded with a colony tipped over
My observation hive is not thriving
I'm confused by differing foundation cell sizes
I'm unsure whether to get a wooden or plastic hive
A loaded hive stand has accidentally
There are many dead drones at the hive entrance
There are two queens in the brood nest collapsed
CHAPTER FOUR MANAGING AND MANIPULATING HIVES
The bees have built combs in empty spaces
The bees are gathering on the front of the hive
The brood nest is overcrowded
The brood nest has been built across multiple boxes
The hive is bulging with too many bees
A large number of bees died off in winter
The bees are visiting neighbours' water sources
The colony looks too weak to survive winter
My apiary has been flooded
The hive lower entrance is often blocked in winter
Brace combs have stuck the supers together
The bees have built many swarm cells
Rain has stopped pollen and nectar flow
CHAPTER FIVE QUEEN PRODUCTION AND MAINTENANCE
I need to store a replacement queen
I don't know where to look for the queen
The queen is not a good egg producer
Some cells have multiple eggs
Finding the queen takes a long time
The queen is difficult to cage
Larvae won't slide off the grafting tool
My drone bee numbers are getting smaller
Some of my queen mating nucs have failed
My replacement queen was killed
CHAPTER DISEASES AND PESTS OF HONEY BEES
There are mice living in the beehive in winter
There are multiple problems with the colony
Varroa mites have overrun the colony
There are ants nesting beneath the outer cover
Small hive beetles have invaded the colony
There are signs of AFB in the hive, but no foul odour
Chalkbrood is affecting colony productivity
There are faecal smears on the hive
Cane toads are visiting the apiary
The brood smells foul and has punctured capping
Wax worms are destroying the combs
CHAPTER SEVEN POLLEN AND POLLINATION
Too much pollen is packed in the brood nest
Beeswax is firmly stuck to plastic foundation
Propolis is difficult to gather and process
There are drones stuck in the pollen trap
The bees are pollinating weeds
The pollen I have collected is decaying
My pollination colonies are mixed sizes
Too few bees are pollinating the target crop
The bees won't eat certain types of pollen
The bees won't consume pollen supplements
Many bees were lost during a hive move
The bees are struggling to find good forage
Bee stings are painful and cause swelling
My honey soap is not setting properly
My neighbour has found bee droppings on their car
Spots of beeswax are hard to remove
Rendering beeswax over a flame is a fire hazard
CHAPTER EIGHT PRODUCING AND PROCESSING HONEY
The bees won't leave full honey supers
Some honeycombs do not have wax cappings
The extracting room is cramped and inefficient
Many bees are coming to the extracting area
Honey has crystallised in the comb
My comb honey crop is disappointingly small
The honey filter keeps getting clogged
I'm unsure how to guarantee varietal sources
Liquid honey has accidentally been spilled
Extracted honey has crystallised in jars
My bottled honey is not selling well
CHAPTER NINE BEESWAX AND SPECIALTY ISSUES
I can't get my beeswax candles out of the mould
My pure beeswax candles have a cloudy film