Pollination management 325663 223837177 2008-07-06T02:02:13Z Shoefly 142549 /* Number of hives needed per acre (4,000 m²) of crop pollination */ {{citations missing|date=December 2007}} [[Image:Plumpollen0060.jpg|300px|right|thumb|'''Honey bee on domestic plum blossom'''<br>[[Honey bee]]s are especially{{fact|date=September 2007}} well adapted to collecting and moving pollen,thus are the most commonly used pollinators. Note the light brown [[pollen]] in the [[pollen basket]].]] [[Image:Pumpkin pollination4365.jpg|300px|thumb|<br>Placing honey bees for pumpkin pollination<br> Mohawk Valley, NY</div>]] [[Image:Date pollinator up.JPG|thumb|right|Date pollinator up a 'Abid Rahim' palm tree]] '''Pollination Management''' is the label for horticultural practices that accomplish or enhance [[pollination]] of a crop, to improve yield or quality, by understanding of the particular crop's pollination needs, and by knowledgeable management of [[pollenizer]]s, [[pollinator]]s, and pollination conditions. ==Pollinator decline== ''Main article: [[Pollinator decline]]'' With the decline of both wild and domestic pollinator populations, pollination management is becoming an increasingly important part of [[horticulture]]. Factors that cause the [[pollinator decline|loss of pollinators]] include [[pesticide misuse]], unprofitability of [[beekeeping]] for [[honey]], rapid transfer of pests and diseases to new areas of the globe, urban/suburban development, changing crop patterns, [[clearcut]] [[logging]] (particularly when mixed forests are replaced by [[monoculture]] pine), clearing of hedgerows and other wild areas, loss of nectar corridors for migratory pollinators, and human paranoia of stinging insects ([[killer bee]] hype). In 1989, following [[Hurricane Hugo]], massive aerial applications for [[mosquito]]es were done in [[South Carolina]]. The following year, watermelon growers who did not place [[beehive (beekeeping)|beehives]] in the fields, observed the fruit begin to develop, then abort, or develop into small deformed fruit. There were entire fields that never yielded a single usable melon. Some growers went out of business; others began to seriously manage pollination. Since beekeepers were also heavily damaged by the mosquito spraying, the supply of bees for pollination was critically short for several years. ==Importance of pollination management== The increasing size of fields and orchards ([[monoculture]]) increase the importance of pollination management. Monoculture can cause a brief period when pollinators have more food resources than they can use, while other periods of the year can bring starvation or pesticide contamination of food sources. Most pollinator species rely on a steady [[nectar source]] and [[pollen source]] throughout the growing season to build up their numbers. Crops that traditionally have had managed pollination include [[apple]], [[almond]]s, [[pear]]s, some [[plum]] and [[cherry]] varieties, [[blueberries]], [[Cranberry|cranberries]], [[cucumber]]s, [[cantaloupe]], [[watermelon]], [[alfalfa]] seeds, [[onion]] seeds, and many others. Some crops that have traditionally depended entirely on chance pollination by wild pollinators need pollination management nowadays to make a profitable crop. Some crops, especially when planted in a monoculture situation, require a very high level of pollinators to produce economically viable crops. This may be because of lack of attractiveness of the blossoms, or from trying to pollinate with an alternative when the native pollinator is extinct or rare. These include crops such as alfalfa, cranberries, and [[kiwifruit]]. This technique is known as [[saturation pollination]]. In many such cases, various native bees are vastly more efficient at pollination (e.g., with blueberries<ref>Javorek SK, Mackenzie KE, Vander Kloet SP (2002) Comparative pollination effectiveness among bees ([[Hymenoptera]]: [[Apoidea]]) on Lowbush Blueberry (Ericaceae: ''[[Vaccinium angustifolium]]''). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 95: 345–351</ref>), but the inefficiency of the honey bees is compensated for by using large numbers of hives, the total number of foragers thereby far exceeding the local abundance of native pollinators. In a very few cases, it has been possible to develop commercially viable pollination techniques that use the more efficient pollinators, rather than continued reliance on honey bees, as in the management of the [[alfalfa leafcutter bee]]. ==== Number of hives needed per acre (4,000 m²) of crop pollination ==== [[Image:Pumpkin pollination4365.jpg|250px|thumb|Placing honey bees for pumpkin pollination in [[Mohawk Valley]], [[NY]]]] {| class="wikitable sortable" !Common name !number of hives <br> per acre |- |Alfalfa |1, (3-5) <ref> [http://www.extension.uiuc.edu/~vista/html_pubs/BEEKEEP/CHAPT8/chapt8.html POLLINATION BY HONEY BEES] </ref> |- |Almonds |2-3 |- |Apples (normal size) |1 |- |Apples (semi dwarf) |2 |- |Apples (dwarf) |3 |- |Apricots |1 |- |Blueberries |3-4 |- |Borage |0.6 - 1.0 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Buckwheat |0.5 - 1 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Canola |1 |- |Canola (hybrid) |2.0 -2.5 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Cantaloupes |2-4, (average 2.4) <ref> [http://apis.ifas.ufl.edu/papers/vinepol.htm Pollination Requirements of Vine Crops], Malcolm T. Sanford, Extension Apiculturist [[University of Florida]], 1995 </ref> |- |Clovers |1 - 2 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Cranberries |3 |- |Cucumbers |1-2, (average 2.1) <ref> [http://apis.ifas.ufl.edu/papers/vinepol.htm Pollination Requirements of Vine Crops], Malcolm T. Sanford, Extension Apiculturist [[University of Florida]], 1995 </ref> |- |Ginseng |1 |- |Muskmelon |1-3 <ref> [http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/veghandbook/chapter4/chapter4.html Vegetable Grower's Handbook] [[Texas Agricultural Extension Service]]s </ref> (7.5 hives per [[hectare]]) <ref> [http://www.agric.wa.gov.au/content/AAP/HBH/bulletin4298_rockmelon.htm Bee pollination benefits for rockmelon crops] Department of Agriculture and Food , Western Australia </ref> |- |Nectarines |1 |- |Peaches |1 |- |Pears |1 |- |Plums |1 |- |Pumpkins |1 |- |Raspberries |0.7 - 1.3 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Squash |1-3 <ref> [http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/veghandbook/chapter4/chapter4.html] </ref> |- |Strawberries |1 - 3.5 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Sunflower |1 |- |Trefoil |0.6 - 1.5 <ref>[http://manitobabee.org/bulletin/archives/CustpollrecsMAY2007_7.pdf Custom Pollination with Honey Bees in Manitoba] </ref> |- |Watermelon |1-3, (average 1.3} <ref> [http://apis.ifas.ufl.edu/papers/vinepol.htm Pollination Requirements of Vine Crops], Malcolm T. Sanford, Extension Apiculturist [[University of Florida]], 1995 </ref> |- |Zucchini |1 |} <ref> [http://www.ontariobee.com/5_pollination/default.htm Ontario Beekeepers' Association] </ref> It is estimated that about one hive per acre will sufficiently pollinate watermelons. In the 1950s when the woods were full of wild bee trees, and beehives were normally kept on most [[South Carolina]] farms, a farmer who grew ten acres (40,000 m²) of watermelons would be a large grower and probably had all the pollination needed. But today's grower may grow 200 acres (800,000 m²), and, if lucky, there might be one bee tree left within range. The only option in the current economy is to bring beehives to the field during blossom time. <ref> Delaplaine et al. 1994, Bee pollination of Georgia crop plants. ''CES Bulletin 1106''</ref> See also: [[List of crop plants pollinated by bees]] ==Types of pollinators== Organisms that are currently being used as pollinators in managed pollination are [[honey bee]]s, [[bumblebee]]s, [[alfalfa leafcutter bee]]s, and [[orchard mason bee]]s. Other species are expected to be added to this list as this field develops. Humans also can be pollinators, as the gardener who [[Hand pollination|hand pollinates]] her [[Squash (vegetable)|squash]] blossoms, or the [[Middle East]]ern farmer, who climbs his [[date palm]]s to pollinate them. The [[Cooperative extension service]] recommends one honey bee hive per acre (4,000 m² per hive) for standard watermelon varieties to meet this crop's pollination needs. In the past, when fields were small, pollination was accomplished by a mix of bees kept on farms, bumblebees, carpenter bees, feral honey bees in hollow trees and other insects. Today, with melons planted in large tracts, the grower may no longer have hives on the farm; he may have poisoned many of the pollinators by spraying blooming cotton; he may have logged off the woods, removing hollow trees that provided homes for bees, and pushed out the hedgerows that were home for solitary native bees and other pollinating insects. ==Planning for improved pollination== Before pollination needs were understood, orchardists often planted entire blocks of apples of a single variety. Because apples are self sterile, and different members of a single variety are genetic [[cloning|clone]]s (equivalent to a single plant), this is not a good idea. Growers now supply pollenizers, by planting [[crab apple]]s interspersed in the rows, or by grafting crab apple limbs on some trees. Pollenizers can also be supplied by putting drum bouquets of crab apples or a compatible apple variety in the orchard blocks. The field of pollination management cannot be placed wholly within any other field, because it bridges several fields. It draws from [[horticulture]], [[beekeeping|apiculture]], [[zoology]] (especially [[entomology]]), [[ecology]], and [[botany]]. [[Image:Bee migration 9045.JPG|500px|left|thumb|US migratory commercial beekeeper moving spring bees from South Carolina to Maine for blueberry pollination]] ==External links== *[http://gears.tucson.ars.ag.gov/book/index.html Insect Pollination Of Cultivated Crop Plants] S.E. McGregor, [[USDA]], 1976 *[http://www.seeds.ca/proj/poll/lit/Pollinator%20Awareness%20Paper.pdf Raising awareness among Canadians about plant pollinators and the importance of monitoring and conserving them]J. A. Dyer, Seeds of Diversity Canada, Feb. 2006 == References == {{reflist}} [[Category:Agriculture]] [[Category:Beekeeping]] [[Category:crops]] [[Category:Pollination]]