When I finally admitted defeat the other day and wound up having to compost my bees, I vowed to learn all I could
from other beekeepers before getting another hive.
I'm so glad I did so - I learned so much there from listening to
other beekeepers, and the particulars of this region of beekeeping.
For Cox and
other beekeepers, the long, reasoned march of science looks more like a slow hair - pull, in which a difficult scientific problem is rendered almost impossible to resolve by the toxic influences of politics and money.
According to Cox and
other beekeepers, classic CCD is back, too.
A beekeeper may keep bees in order to collect honey and beeswax, or for the purpose of pollinating crops, or to produce bees for sale to
other beekeepers.
But I don't think it's a must to take a course - most of the information can also be obtained from listservs, websites,
other beekeepers and books (I highly recommend Beekeeping for Dummies).
And of course, if there are
any other beekeepers reading this - amateur or professional - please share your experiences in the comments below!