652 
PARTRIDGE PEA 
rian mother. If, therefore, but one purely 
mated queen is' obtained, her daughters 
produce pure drones, regardless of mis- 
mating, and the race may be established in 
an apiary. 
The conclusion frequently drawn from 
this theory is that the queen can voluntarily 
control the sex of an egg by withholding or 
allowing its fertilization. It is sometimes 
further held that all eggs in the ovary are 
male, and the sex changed by fertilization. 
These conclusions are not based on obser¬ 
vation, and proof is entirely lacking. In a 
statement of the theory, therefore, it is 
necessary to stick to facts. 
The Dzierzon theory has been combated 
by many different scientists, more recently 
by Dickel, a German beekeeper with scien¬ 
tific aspirations. While the theory has 
been somewhat modified by recent work, it 
remains the prevalent view today, and 
Dickel generally receives the condemnation 
so richly deserved. See Dzierzon. 
Parthenogenesis occurs in many other 
orders of both plants and animals, and a 
comparison of the various results is most 
interesting. Merely to cite some cases for 
comparison: In the bee, only males are 
produced parthenogenetically; in certain 
Jepidoptera, only females are so produced; 
while in plant lice and certain small Crus¬ 
tacea, both males and femaes are pro¬ 
duced from unfertilized eggs. Ants were 
formerly supposed to have a parthenoge- 
netic development identical with that seen 
in the honeybee; but more recent work 
makes this doubtful as a general statement. 
The silkworm is occasionally parthenoge- 
netic. 
PARTRIDGE PEA (Cassia Chamae- 
christa ).—Also called sensitive pea. The 
genus Cassia contains more than 275 spe¬ 
cies, which are very abundant in tropical 
America. It is of interest to note that the 
flowers of this great genus are both nectar¬ 
less and odorless. They are pollen flowers. 
While all the species may be cross-pollin¬ 
ated by insects, visiting them for pollen, 
they all retain the power of self-fertiliza¬ 
tion. The species consist of herbs, shrubs, 
and, in tropical regions, of trees, with 
evenly pinnate leaves and yellow or white 
flowers. There are five species in the north¬ 
eastern States, and 25 species ki the south¬ 
eastern States, a part of the species being 
common to both areas. 
Partridge pea is an herbaceous much- 
branched, spreading annual with pinnate 
leaves, and showy yellow flowers which 
often have the petals purple-spotted at 
base. It extends from Maine to Florida 
and westward to Indiana and Texas, but 
it is valuable as a honey plant chiefly in 
Florida and Georgia. In the north-central 
part of Florida there are thousands of 
acres in bloom during July and August, 
and for miles the ground is covered with a 
yellow carpet of flowers. It is also common 
in Georgia; in many dry sandy sections of 
the South, indeed, it is the main depend¬ 
ence of the beekeeper, making beekeeping 
possible in very unfavorable localities. 
The blooming period is long, beginning 
the last of June and closing late in Septem¬ 
ber. The flowers are wholly nectarless, and 
are pollinated by bumblebees, which visit 
them for pollen. But nectar is secreted 
profusely by extra-floral glands located on 
the upper side, near the base, of the leaf¬ 
stalks (petioles). This gland is saucer¬ 
shaped, and there is usually only one to a 
leaf. Unless the summer rains are too 
heavy and continuous, nectar is yielded 
every season for more than 100 days. Much 
rain washes the nectar from the glands be¬ 
fore the bees can gather it. In early morn¬ 
ing and late in the afternoon there is a 
large drop of nectar on each gland, but 
during the middle of the day it is greatly 
i educed in size by evaporation unless it is 
cloudy. During the night the nectar is se¬ 
creted in such large quantities that it runs 
down the stems, and wets the, ground for 
an inch or more around the base of the 
stalks. The nectar in the daytime is very 
thin and probably at night contains a very 
large percentage of water. Surprise has 
been expressed that the bees do not gather 
more honey from this soui'ce, but the thin¬ 
ness of the nectar is probably the reason 
in part. From one to three supers of hon¬ 
ey are stored from partridge pea, and 100 
pounds per colony have been obtained. 
The honey is medium-light amber, ex¬ 
ceptionally thin, with a poor flavor. At 
Fort White, Fla., the surplus comes from 
partridge pea and chinquapin which yields 
a bitter honey. Inferior as is the flavor of 
this honey, its fine appearance has caused 
