Helpful Beekeeping Information | Bee Care & Education 

Helpful Beekeeping Information & Resources

Beekeeping is a lifelong journey of observation, curiosity, and learning. As beekeeper Bob Binnie often reminds us, beekeeping is both a science and an art. Every colony is unique, and local conditions can influence outcomes in ways that no book, mentor, or website can fully predict.

This collection of educational resources, seasonal insights, practical guidance, and recommended readings reflects the lessons we have gathered along our own journey as beekeepers in East Tennessee. The books, articles, research, and educational materials shared here are not sponsored endorsements, but rather resources that have challenged us, inspired us, and helped deepen our understanding of honey bees and the natural world they inhabit.

While we strive to share accurate and helpful information, we encourage every beekeeper to remain curious, seek multiple perspectives, and validate information through their own observations and experiences. One of the greatest lessons we've learned is that no two colonies are exactly alike, and some of the best teachers are found within the hive itself.

Our hope is to encourage thoughtful stewardship, informed beekeeping practices, and a deeper appreciation for the remarkable wisdom of honey bees. Most importantly, we encourage you to get to know your bees. Every hive has something to teach, and every interaction is an opportunity to learn.

Our Reading List

(*If there is a book that has helped improve your apiculture knowledge, please share it!)

• What Bees Want: Beekeeping As Nature Intended - Susan Knilans & Jacqueline Freeman

• Song of Increase: Listening to the Wisdom of Honeybees for Kinder Beekeeping and a Better World - Jacqueline Freeman

• The Wisdom Of The Hive - Michelle Cassandra Johnson and Amy Burtaine

• The Queen Must Die - William Longgood

• The Shamanic Way of the Bee - Simon Buxton

• Beekeeping at Buckfast Abbey - Brother Adam

• Health and the Honeybee - Charles Mraz

• Contemporary Queen Rearing - Harry Laidlaw Jr.

• The Sacred Bee - Hilda M. Ransome

• Honeybee: Lessons From An Accidental Beekeeper- C. Marina Marchese

• Natural Medicine From Honeybees (Apitherapy) - Jacob Kaal 

• Value Added Products From Beekeeping by R. Krell

  • https://www.fao.org/4/w0076E/w0076e00.htm

• Beekeeping In Tennessee by UT Institute of Agriculture 

  • https://rutherford.tennessee.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/200/2020/10/PB1745-beekeeping-in-TN.pdf

• Honeybee Democracy - Thomas D. Seeley

• The Golden Rules of Beekeeping - Blake Shook and Kamon Reynolds

• The Beekeeper's Apothecary: A Foundational Guide For Becoming Your Own Herbalist - Kaylee Richardson

• Guide To Honey Bee Queen Banking - Ellen Topitzhofer and Ramesh Sagili, Oregon State University

  • https://static1.squarespace.com/static/650342507631075013d25a2c/t/650b49b275ac2c08320c1575/1728673371659/queen_banking_guide_web_copy.pdf

• How to Make a Swarm-Stopping Split With a Double Screen Board - BetterBee

  • https://www.betterbee.com/instructions-and-resources/making-a-swarm-stopping-split-using-a-double-screen-board.asp?srsltid=AfmBOoo7V6rGfMVa0fdVTahJhKBXHaEfeyCY1eHWDwmuPfpV6IKXxAvb

• Beekeeping Like a Girl: A Blog By Girl Next Door Honey

  • https://beekeepinglikeagirl.com/

• UT Honey and Pollen Assessment - Conner R. Reed, Larry J. Millet 

  • https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.06.27.660778v1

• Beekeeping In Tennessee by UT Institute of Agriculture 

  • https://rutherford.tennessee.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/200/2020/10/PB1745-beekeeping-in-TN.pdf

• Fat Bees Skinny Bees (a manual on honey bee nutrition for beekeepers) - Doug Somerville

  • https://sierrabeekeepers.com/images/Feeding%20Bees/Fat%20Bees%20Skinny%20Bees%20-%20a%20manual%20on%20honey%20bee%20nutrition%20for%20beekeepers%2005-054.pdf

Local Apiculture Supply Companies: 

Maryville, Tennessee

• • Smokey Ridge Apiaries

    • https://smokeyridgeapiaries.com/

    • 368 Odell Rd

Maryville, TN 37801

• • AgCentral Co-Op

    • https://www.agcentral.coop/

    • 3939 US-411

Maryville, TN 37801

• Sevierly Buzzed Honey

  • https://sevierbees.com/

• Diamond Springs Apiary

  • https://maps.app.goo.gl/ds7hv52VYBgHXWvY9

• Strawberry Plains Honey Co

  • https://www.strawberryplainshoney.com/

Online Apiculture Supply Companies:

Helpful Links & Info

• TN Department of Agriculture: Apiary Registration

  • https://www.tn.gov/agriculture/animals/apiary/apiary-registration.html

  • All Apiaries in the state of Tennessee are required to be registered with the State Department of Agriculture under Senate Bill No. 556, Title 44, Chapter 15, Part I, Tennessee Apiary Act of 1995.

• TN Department of Agriculture: Apiary

  • https://www.tn.gov/agriculture/animals/apiary.html

• TN Department of Agriculture: Apiary Forms

  • https://www.tn.gov/agriculture/animals/apiary/apiary-forms.html

• TN Department of Agriculture Apiary Inspector Areas:

  • https://www.tn.gov/agriculture/animals/apiary/apiary-inspector-staff.html

• University of Tennessee Honey and Pollen Assessment

  • https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.06.27.660778v1 

• University of Tennessee Master Beekeeing Program

  • https://epp.tennessee.edu/masterbee/

• University of Missouri Beekpeeing Planning Budget Tool

  • https://extension.missouri.edu/publications/g692

• USDA Farm Service Agency Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm Raised Fish (ELAP)

  • https://www.fsa.usda.gov/resources/programs/emergency-assistance-livestock-honeybees-farm-raised-fish-elap

• USDA Farm Service Agency Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) Related Information

  • https://www.fsa.usda.gov/resources/programs/noninsured-crop-disaster-assistance-related-information

• USDA Farm Service Agency State Office Lookup

  • https://www.fsa.usda.gov/state-offices

• National Honey Report

  • https://www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/fvmhoney.pdf

• NASA Goddard Space Flight Center: HoneyBeeNet

  • https://honeybeenet.gsfc.nasa.gov/Honeybees/ForageRegion.php?StReg=TN_11

  • List of Honey Bee Forage Species within Region 11 for the State of TN

• Blount County Beekeepers Association

  • https://blountbees.wordpress.com/

• Tennessee Beekeepers Association

  • https://tnbeekeepers.org/

• Heroes To Hives

  • https://miffs.org/heroes-to-hives/

• Hives For Heroes:

  • https://hivesforheroes.org/

• Farmer Veteran Coalition

  • https://farmvetco.org/

• Homegrown By Heroes

  • https://farmvetco.org/hbh/

• Honey/Pollen Identification Sampling

  • https://jonahventures.com/

• Online Diagnostic Tools For Honey Bee Diseases

  • https://pollinators.msu.edu/sites/_pollinators/rise360/diagnostic-tools-for-honey-bee-diseases/index.html#/

• Xerces Society Pollinator-Friendly Native Plant Lists

  • https://xerces.org/pollinator-conservation/pollinator-friendly-plant-lists

• Bee Check

  • https://tn.beecheck.org/

• Blount County Soil and Water Conservation District

  • Native Tree & Shrub Sale

  • https://www.bcswcd.org/s/shop

• Beekeeping Education Hub - BetterBee

  • https://www.betterbee.com/beekeeping-hub/

• Natural Beekeeping Trust

  • https://www.naturalbeekeepingtrust.org/

Helpful YouTube Channels

• Arkansas Division of Agriculture Home Beekeeping Course

  • https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzwlawVM4o4E43fZF9r8_fDbThDSyllPQ

• Kamon Reynolds - Tennessee's Bees

  • http://www.youtube.com/@kamonreynolds

• Bob Binnie 

  • http://www.youtube.com/@bobbinnie9872

• Ian Steppler

  • http://www.youtube.com/@aCanadianBeekeepersBlog

• Heroes to Hives

  • http://www.youtube.com/@heroestohives

• Randy Oliver

  • https://www.youtube.com/@RandyOliver

• National Honey Show:

  • https://www.youtube.com/@NationalHoneyShowUK

• Sustainable Beekeepers Guild of Michigan (SBGMI)

  • https://www.youtube.com/@sbgmimedia