A guide for backyard beekeepers who have advanced into their second year with top bar hives.

Bee populations are plummeting worldwide. Colony Collapse Disorder poses a serious threat to many plants that rely on bees for pollination, including a significant proportion of our food crops. Top bar hives are based on the concept of understanding and working with bees’ natural systems, enabling top bar beekeepers to produce honey and natural wax while helping bees thrive now and in the years ahead.

Advanced Top Bar Beekeeping picks up where The Thinking Beekeeper left off, providing a wealth of information for backyard beekeepers ready to take the next step with this economical, bee-friendly approach. Author Christy Hemenway shares:

• Guidance and techniques for the second season and beyond


• An in-depth analysis of the dangers climate change and conventional agriculture present to pollinators


• An inspiring vision of restoring bee populations through organic farming and natural, chemical-free beekeeping.

While continuing to emphasize the intimate connection between our food system, bees, and the wellbeing of the planet, Advanced Top Bar Beekeeping breaks new ground in the quest to shift the dominant agricultural paradigm away from chemical-laden, industrial beekeeping monoculture and towards healthy, diverse local farming. See what all the buzz is about with this must-read guide for the new breed of thinking beekeeper.

Praise for Advanced Top Bar Beekeeping

“Christy's experience and drive to further the use of top bar hives is extremely evident in this her next level work. Her first book got you into a hive . . . . I learned a few tricks from her and my top bar beekeeping improved due to her insights and explanations. But what about next year? That's where this work picks up. It gets you through winter, spring, swarms, feeding, splits, harvesting honey and then settles into the very best thing I can say about this form of keeping bees. Clean wax.” —Kim Flottum, editor, Bee Culture magazine, and editor, BEEKeeping: Your First Three Years

“[Christy’s] new book is not only essential for those who want to keep bees in top bar hives, but also for those want a deeper look on beekeeping problems and on the life of Apis mellifera.” —Paolo Fontana, entomologist / apidologist

“Here are your next steps to keeping bees in top bar hives. Thoughtful, experienced, articulate advice.” —Michael Bush, BushFarms.com