548 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



May i5 



PASTEBOARD AS A MATERIAL FOR SECTIONS. 

 In response to your request I am sending 

 you a sample of my pasteboard section un- 

 folded, and also one formed, and filled with 

 honey. The board that I used last year was 

 too light, and I should prefer to use that as 

 heavy as No. 15 or 20, which is 15 or 20 

 sheets to the bundle. The sheets are 26 X 

 38, making 35 plain Ig-inch sections; then 

 20 sheets to the bundle will make 700 sec- 



tions at a cost (for material) of $1.75. 

 Strawboard is quoted at $1.75 per bundle, or 

 $42.50 per ton (50 lbs. to the bundle). I 

 have been told that strawboard can be 

 bought for $27.00 per ton in car lots, mak- 

 ing it less than 75 cents per bundle by the 

 car. The cost of material depends, there- 

 fore, upon the quantity you buy. 



Those that I used last year cost about one 

 cent each; but this cost was mostly for 

 changing the machinery for cutting. The 

 making can be done very cheaply, but I can 

 give no definite figures. Those that I have 

 prepared for this year have white paper 

 pasted on the outside. Clyde Cady. 



Grass Lake, Mich., March 22. 



[I saw a shipping-case full of these paste- 

 board sections containing honey, at the Mich- 

 igan State convention at Grand Rapids, and 

 was surprised at the result. Some of the 

 edges were gnawed, but Mr. Cady stated 

 that this happened only when they were left 

 on while the bees had nothing to do. Al- 

 though the pasteboard may not make as 

 firm a section as those now used, yet it is 

 possible that bee-keepers may have to use 

 it on account of the scarcity'of basswood. 

 Attempts have been made to obtain other 

 idnds of wood for sections, but none have 

 been found as yet, white or dark, that will 

 bend without breaking. — H. H. R.] 



LAYING WORKERS. 



Have you ever seen laying workers in the 

 act of laying? 



This summer I put a frame of brood con- 

 taining two sealed queen-cells in an observa- 

 tory hive. With regret I saw that neither cell 

 hatched; so, indifferently. I let this nucleus 

 remain unnoticed for some time. Later I 

 was surprised to find eggs in some cells. 

 This became interesting, so I watched every 

 day. Soon I saw five or six eggs in a cell. 

 One day I saw the laying worker in the act 

 of depositing eggs. The next day I saw two 

 side by side in the same occupation. Then I 

 watched for any extraordinary attention 

 which they might receive from the others, 

 but saw none. They mingled with the com- 



mon bees unnoticed, and would soon be lost 

 to view. I find no difference in their appear- 

 ance from the others. C. J. Thies. 



Pepin, Wis. 



[Dr. E. F. Phillips, of the University of 

 Pennsylvania, who has spent hours, days, 

 and weeks watching fertile workers, was 

 requested to answer these questions, which 

 he has done.] 



Last summer I caught five workers in the 

 act of laying eggs in cells on one side of one 

 frame within about three-quarters of an 

 hour. While in the act of laying, these 

 workers received almost as much attention 

 from the other workers as does a queen 

 under similar circumstances; but within a 

 minute or two they cease to follow the fer- 

 tile worker. It would seem that, during 

 oviposition, and for a short time after, the 

 workers are attracted to the fertile worker 

 by some odor, or in some other way, just as 

 they are attracted to the queen. All the 

 workers which were observed laying at this 

 time and at other times were almost hair- 

 less, and were probably old. 



E. F. Phillips. 



COMBINED ALIGHTING-BOARD AND ENTRANCE- 

 CLOSER. 



I send a sketch of an entrance-contractor 

 that is adjustable, always held against the 

 top of the entrance. The wooden part 



should be made in accordance with the size 

 of the entrance. F. B. Magill. 



Piqua, Ohio. 



[This idea is good. The only objection I 

 see is that the hinges would be too expen- 

 sive, and the screws would be liable to work 

 loose under the influence of the weather. It 

 would have the merit that it could be folded 

 up out of the way easily to let the lawn- 

 mower run by; and whenever one is ready 

 to move bees, or robbing may have got 

 started, the entrance could be closed in a 

 few seconds. —Ed.] 



