Taught by Philip Chandler

Natural Beekeeping

£45
Level: Peer






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Level: Peer

Course overview

Philip Chandler, author of 'The Barefoot Beekeeper' introduces you to natural beekeeping, including the theory and practical techniques for a sustainable, organic approach to cultivating Bee bee colonies.

The course focuses on keeping bees for their own sake, rather than simply for the products of their labour. (Although if there is a surplus of honey, we will be pleased to have some for ourselves!)

A revolutionary beekeeping course about sustainable, chemical-free, 'natural' beekeeping, with no heavy lifting. Philip shows you how you can make everything you need, using recycled materials and simple tools.

If you are already a keen gardener, you may have considered the idea of having a beehive or two in your garden, but been put off by the cost and complications of conventional beekeeping equipment. Philip will show you how keeping bees can be much easier than you think, while costing much less than you think, especially if you can do simple woodwork yourself.

You'll learn:

  • about the role of bees and impact of agriculture
  • how to make and use a top bar hive
  • about the lifecycle of honeybees
  • nurturing your bee colony

The course includes:

  • 4 on-demand video lessons - presented by Philip Chandler
  • lifetime access to the videos, notes and interactive class
  • flexible classes - join and learn when and where you like
  • downloadable lesson notes
  • practical beekeeping projects
  • access on your mobile, PC, Mac or laptop
  • small interactive online classroom - chat online to students from around the world and share your creative ideas

Time to complete the natural beekeeping course:

Every student is different but in general we think the whole course will take around 12 hours 20 minutes to complete including:

  • Video lessons: 1 hour 20 minutes in total
  • Course notes: 30 minutes per lesson
  • Your planting design projects: at least 2 hours per lesson
  • Interactive classroom time: 15 minutes per lesson

You'll need:

Philip will teach you how to make a home for your bees using recycled materials and your tool box - you will need some basic woodwork skills.

This course is suitable for all levels - including gardeners interested in attracting bees into their garden and experienced beekeepers looking to learn sustainable beekeeping techniques.

Ready to get started?

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Any questions? Contact us by clicking on the orange speech symbol - we'd love to hear from you.

Watch course trailer

Lesson summary

The Nature of Honeybees
Before considering 'keeping' bees, we take a look at their world, their life-cycle and how we can work with them to achieve a mutually beneficial relationship.
Bees, Flowers and Natural Beekeeping
We consider the relationship between bees and flowering plants and their importance for pollination. We will also look at the type of beehives recommended for 'natural beekeeping', and consider ways in which you can take sensible precautions when locating hives and handling bees.
Starting with a Top Bar Hive
We will examine how a top bar beehive works, and how best to use it to supervise bees, while minimizing our interference in their lives. We will also consider how to obtain bees and persuade them to live in the hives we provide them.
Establishing a healthy colony
Having introduced bees to their new home, we look at hive management and how to provide optimum conditions in which they can thrive, while learning as much as possible about their natural behaviour with a view to improving our understanding of them.

Get the most from peer knowledge

  • Start course whenever you like
  • Practise what you learn with your peers
  • Online classroom with up to 20 classmates
  • Lessons with videos & notes
  • Course assignments
  • Group chat & direct message classmates
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes & classroom

meet the expert

Philip Chandler

An advocate for natural beekeeping who developed Top Bar Hives and authored The Barefoot Beekeeper.

Read more

Why choose Learning with Experts?

Start whenever it suits you, and immerse yourself in motivational lesson tutorials with expert guidance.
Enhance your learning and personal growth with lesson assignments. Each course includes an optional assignment at the end of every lesson.
Drop a friendly message or respond to your assignment feedback. Our world-class experts are just a click away, ready to help you!
Stay informed about your own progress and those of your peers, and take joy in celebrating achievements along the way.
Chat and share ideas with passionate communities of learners from around the world.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between PEER and EXPERT options?

At Peer and Expert level, you get access to the same core content and features:

  • Video lesson tutorials led by your expert tutor
  • Downloadable lesson notes
  • Option to practise what you learn with lesson assignments
  • Group learning within an online interactive classroom of up to 20 classmates
  • Lifetime access to videos, notes and classroom

If you choose Expert level, you get all of the above plus the following:

  • Personalised assignment feedback and coaching from your expert tutor
  • Opportunity to interact with your expert tutor through a private messaging system
  • Certificate of completion.
What is an online classroom?

Our online classroom has been developed to allow you to learn from our experts in a sociable environment alongside up to 20 other students. After each video tutorial led by your expert, you will be encouraged to practice what you have learned with optional assignments - these can be seen by the other students in your class, who are free to share their own thoughts and questions with you.

You will be encouraged to take part in an ongoing class discussion where you can discuss ideas, post images or work, and comment on each other’s assignments. It’s a great way to learn from other like-minded people who share your passion from all over the world.

This means not only do you benefit from people who are outstanding in their field, but also from a close-knit group of like-minded people whom you can learn alongside. Group learning has shown to greatly improve not just the experience of studying, but also how well you retain the knowledge, and we have built our classroom experience around this fact.
When can I start my course and how long will it take?

You can start your course any time within 12 months after receipt of your purchase confirmation email. Once you start, you’ll have lifetime access — meaning you can revisit the lesson videos and notes whenever you want.

Our courses are designed so that you can study at your own pace, some prefer to binge learn while others like to spread their studying over a longer period of time - it’s completely up to you. To give you a rough time frame, each lesson video is approximately 30-40 minutes long, and we recommend that you spend around an hour on each assignment.
Support and full FAQs

If you need any help with a course, be it one you’ve started already, or one you are looking to purchase, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Support email address, or view the full FAQ’s here.

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