Urban Beekeeping

 Urban Beekeeping

Reviewed By  Grasshopper2       October 3, 2024

 

Author  Cormac Farrell

Distributor:      Exile Publishing
ISBN:                 9781922539854
Publisher:         Exisle Publishong
Release Date:   October 2024  

Website:    https://exislepublishing.com/product/urban-beekeeping/ 

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The city as a hive

Urban Beekeeping is a beautiful book in every way. Visually it has colourful and detailed photographs on the front cover as well as on most pages. The idea of bee keeping in a busy city is quite fascinating and hopeful. The written word is delightful, sprinkled with humour and explanations that are informative and fascinating.

The author begins the book by explaining that he had a phone call from his partner saying that she had been swarmed by bees as she was wearing a yellow dress. While this was good news for Cormac, his partner was less than impressed. For the beekeeper though it meant he could establish a new hive, and this is where his thoughts turned to the building where he worked. It stood in the centre of Canberra. First, to convince his boss that this was a great idea!

The following chapters teach us about the different varieties of bees, where to keep an apiary, and how to keep it healthy. There is also information about “Swarm catching for fun and profit.” The chapter on how to attract bees to your garden, and how to prepare homes for them is quite explicit, citing the plants, soil and water needed to attract bees.

There is also detailed information about how to set up a hive and how to sustain and maintain it. For more serious bee keeping, there is also a segment on “Creating a systemic science-based breeding program.” The chapter on the extraction of honey and bottling it has photographs to show the steps.

Urban Beekeeping is a delight to read because of the sincerity and passion that Cormac has for bees and the planet. His enthusiasm is infectious and hopefully will inspire those who may wish to learn more about bees. An index and references make this a valuable research tool.

Gardening, Non Fiction