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Ultimate Guide to Beekeeping

Welcome to the ultimate guide to beekeeping where you will find guides for all beekeeping techniques and management processes. If there is anything missing from this page, please click the button below to request a new topic.
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Discover our Guides and How to Articles

HOW TO START BEEKEEPING
HOW TO START BEEKEEPING

Want to know how to start beekeeping? It starts with buying some bees and we have nucleus colonies for sale that are calm, placid and make the perfect partner for your back garden hive.

WHAT IS RAW HONEY
WHAT IS RAW HONEY

Uncover the essence of pure sweetness. Explore the natural, unprocessed goodness of raw honey, its benefits, and why it's a pantry essential.

HOW TO LOOK AFTER YOUR BEES
HOW TO LOOK AFTER YOUR BEES

Dive into the world of responsible beekeeping. Discover essential tips and practices to ensure the health and prosperity of your buzzing companions.

HOW TO STOP BEES SWARMING
HOW TO STOP BEES SWARMING

Master the art of hive management. Explore strategies and techniques to prevent bee swarming, ensuring a harmonious and productive beekeeping environment.

HOW TO USE FLOW HIVES
HOW TO USE FLOW HIVES

Revolutionize your beekeeping experience with Flow Hives. Learn the ins and outs of this innovative system, simplifying honey extraction for beekeepers of all levels.

HOW TO REAR QUEEN BEES
HOW TO REAR QUEEN BEES

Delve into the fascinating process of queen bee rearing. Unlock the secrets of nurturing strong, productive queens for the longevity of your beehive.

ARE MY BEES QUEENLESS
ARE MY BEES QUEENLESS

Decode the mystery of a queenless hive. Learn to identify signs and take action to restore order, ensuring the vitality and continuity of your bee colony.

HOW TO REQUEEN A BEEHIVE
HOW TO REQUEEN A BEEHIVE

Seamlessly introduce a new queen to your hive. Explore step-by-step instructions on requeening to maintain a robust and flourishing bee community.

REASONS TO REQUEEN YOUR BEEHIVE
REASONS TO REQUEEN YOUR BEEHIVE

Understand the necessity of requeening. Explore the signs and reasons behind this crucial practice to enhance the productivity and strength of your bee colony.

TYPES OF QUEEN
TYPES OF QUEEN

Uncover the diversity within a hive. Explore the different types of queens, their roles, and significance in maintaining a well-balanced and thriving bee community.

HOW TO SPLIT A BEEHIVE
HOW TO SPLIT A BEEHIVE

Learn the art of hive division. Discover the step-by-step process of splitting a beehive to promote growth, prevent swarming, and ensure the prosperity of your bee colony.

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I've never done a Google review but Lawrence at Black Mountain Honey goes above and beyond to help the bee keeping community. He gives a lot of his time to offer advice through videos and in answering question on his live streams. He has a lovely manner and is always honest and never condescending.

Jayne Beetham

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Discover Nucs Bees Case Studies

Use A Hard Frost To Kill Wax Moth In Stored Frames With No Chemicals
Use A Hard Frost To Kill Wax Moth In Stored Frames With No Chemicals

Wax moth can absolutely ruin a stack of stored brood comb and what makes it worse is that most people only react once they spot the damage, by which point the frames are already on the way out. I want to show you a simple winter trick that costs nothing, uses no chemicals, and works brilliantly if you get a proper hard frost. This is one of those rare moments in beekeeping where nature hands you a free solution. You just have to use it properly. Killing wax moth In a good colony, wax moth is...

How To Mark A Queen Bee
How To Mark A Queen Bee

Marking a queen bee is one of those small jobs that makes a huge difference to your beekeeping. Once you know how to mark a queen safely and confidently, everything from finding her on a busy frame to tracking her age and performance becomes much easier. In this blog I will walk you through exactly how I mark a mated queen, the tools I use, and some simple tips to help you avoid common mistakes. If you have ever thought “I can never find my queen” or “I am too nervous about hurting her”,...

A Look Inside An Old Abandoned Wasps Nest
A Look Inside An Old Abandoned Wasps Nest

Explore the fascinating structure of an old abandoned wasps nest. Discover insights on wasps nest dynamics and learn how to protect your bees.

How To Light A Bee Smoker - Heat, Fuel and Cool
How To Light A Bee Smoker - Heat, Fuel and Cool

Discover how to light a bee smoker effectively with our step-by-step guide. Ensure your smoker stays lit for calm, safe bee inspections.

How To Scorch, Clean and Sterilise  Beehives
How To Scorch, Clean and Sterilise Beehives

Learn how to clean beehives effectively to keep your bees healthy. Discover step-by-step methods on how to clean beehives and protect your colonies.

How I Extract Honey From Honeycomb
How I Extract Honey From Honeycomb

Discover how to extract honey with ease using my methods at Black Mountain Honey. Learn how to extract honey efficiently and stress-free.

How To Make Natural Beeswax Firelighters From Old Brood Frames
How To Make Natural Beeswax Firelighters From Old Brood Frames

Old brood frames and scrap beeswax can look like a horrible mess, but there is still a lot of value left in them. Once I have rendered out as much wax as I sensibly can, there is often a pile of darker, lower grade wax that I would never use for candles or cosmetics. Instead of throwing it away, I turn it into simple, natural firelighters. In this guide I will walk you through how I make beeswax firelighters using wood wool and recovered wax from old brood frames. This is not about fancy...

How To Render Beeswax Cappings Into Beeswax Blocks
How To Render Beeswax Cappings Into Beeswax Blocks

Beeswax cappings are one of the nicest by products of extracting honey. They look and smell fantastic, they are usually much cleaner than old brood comb, and they give you some of the highest quality wax you will ever get from your bees. A lot of beekeepers scrape them off, let them pile up in a tub and never quite get around to dealing with them. That is a shame, because with a simple process you can turn those sticky cappings into clean wax blocks ready for candles, polishes or swapping in...

How I Time My Varroa Treatment Around A Cold Snap To Kill More Mites
How I Time My Varroa Treatment Around A Cold Snap To Kill More Mites

Varroa is still the number one health threat to honey bees in the UK. You feel it in spring when colonies that looked fine in autumn come out weak, slow and virus ridden. One of the biggest improvements I have made in my own beekeeping is learning to time winter oxalic acid treatments around a natural brood break, instead of just picking a random date on the calendar. In this guide I will show you how I use the first proper cold snap as a trigger, apply a simple three week rule and then treat...

How I Light A Smoker Using My 3 Step Technique: Heat, Fuel And Cool
How I Light A Smoker Using My 3 Step Technique: Heat, Fuel And Cool

Discover how to light a smoker with ease using my 3-step technique: Heat, Fuel, and Cool. Master how to light a smoker confidently today!

Throwback Thursday: Eight Weeks After My Demaree Split
Throwback Thursday: Eight Weeks After My Demaree Split

Explore the power of the Demaree Split in beekeeping! Discover how this method prevented swarming and boosted honey yield in just eight weeks.

Apimondia 2025 Copenhagen: Highlights, Innovations and the Road to Apimondia 2027 Dubai
Apimondia 2025 Copenhagen: Highlights, Innovations and the Road to Apimondia 2027 Dubai

Discover Apimondia 2025 highlights, innovations, and the path to Apimondia 2027 in Dubai. Join the global beekeeping community at Apimondia!

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