tulip - I'd bet there is a way to test for it without stinging you (or endangering your life!). I'm sensitive to wasp and hornet stings but bees are no trouble for me. Of course, I haven't been stung yet, so I hope this is still true!

Our bees are doing well. They have filled two big boxes...the bottom with brood, the top with honey. We harvested one frame a couple of months ago and they have since filled it mostly back up, so we think they are good to go for the winter.

Just two days ago, we saw bees (not yellow-jackets) on the rotten pears! I guess that in the absence of pollen, they'll make due with fruit sugar. It makes sense - they eat what they can now so that they can save the stored honey for later. Smart little buggers!

I'm amazed at all the work you have to go through to keep your hive safe, Shelly. We do nothing...ours sits on two cinder blocks smack in the middle of our orchard with no fence or anything. We did construct a big shade cloth for them when our temps were above 100F for a few days in a row. The sun was relentless, so we thought they'd like a little shade. So far though...they seem happy. Next summer we are going to try raising our own meat chickens and the plan is to use the orchard for that. We may have to rethink our hive location but I'm hoping that chickens and bees can live in harmony. We'll see...that's still a ways off.

Oh and the honey was/is delicious!