The Urban Beekeeper: A Year of Bees in the City

I have read many books written about "my first year beekeeping" or "My Diary of My First Year Beekeeping" etc. this book stands out from the rest.It is a really good read even if you are not a beekeeper and if you are there are still many parts that you will learn from,many parts that will inspire you,many parts where you will smile to yourself in agreement.Steve Benbow is one third showman,one third beekeeper and one third entrepreneur and does all with a flair that is truly admirable .As a beekeeper, with aspirations of a larger apiary upon completion of my Master Beekeepers Certification, this book has encouraged me in many ways.Read and enjoy this great story!Trevor Riches

I really enjoyed this book. The practical advice but more the story of Steve, his bees and the world they live in.

Very interesting and the information on beekeeping in the city is a great help in my idea of bee keeping in some very tigh places to place hives

The way farming is going in this country with the use of neo-nicotinoids, urban bees will be the ones to survive & thrive, particularly as more & more local governments & townsfolk switch on to the necessity of pesticide free parks & gardens.This book should be read by people who are thinking that you can't keep bees in towns & cities due to their wild unpredictability with regard to stinging, swarming & generally being frightening wee critters!! They are none of those things & often the only signs that your neighbours have bees in their 10'x10' back yard is when you suddenly have an abundance of apples growing on that apple tree that's been in your garden for years but just never really done terribly well in the apple department!Although this fellow is what I call a "honey man"; ie someone who deprives the bees of what I consider to be too much of their winter stores for his own profit, he loves his bees & like most of us who keep bees in one way or another, feel extremely passionate about what's out there for them to forage & about the creatures themselves.It's a hobby that grabs you by the proverbials, expands your horizons to as far as the eye can see & beyond & Steve Benbow is no exception to that rule. He is, however, BBKA trained, thus looks for queen cells in a hive to decide whether or not to remove them as a preventative to swarming (amongst other nefarious practices) which is anathema to me as a low-intervention beekeeper. Having given that caution for those other natural beeks out there who look at this book, it's well written; entertaining & if you don't know so much about beekeeping, some of the information is educational, bearing in mind the BBKA doctrines.

I was captivated by a journey or the year in the life of a pioneering urban bee farmer. Who's passion for bees, their welfare and plight inspire. The fact that he relies on them solely for income and has the time to champion these wonderful pollinations and use natural pest control is an example of what is possible.Read it for the journey and nuggets of insight from a master. This isn't a practical book. But it's peppered with info and one mans mission to bring bee diversity to urbanism.