Bee pollination requirement and honey production potential of broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica Plenck) and turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa L.)
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Date
2017
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Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana
Abstract
The studies on the „Bee pollination requirement and honey production potential of broccoli (Brassica
oleracea var. italica Plenck) cultivar Palam Samridhi at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana
and University Seed Farm (USF) Ladhowal, and of turnip (Brassica rapa var. rapa L.) cultivar L-1 at PAU,
Ludhiana and USF, Nabha revealed that out of total 13 flower visiting insect species recorded on both the
crops, 69.7-70.2 per cent were Hymenopterans, predominantly Apis spp. and these were the most abundant
during noon. On broccoli, the foraging intensity of the honey bees was in the order of Apis mellifera>Apis
cerana>Apis dorsata>Apis florea while the foraging rate was in the order of A. cerana>A. mellifera>A.
dorsata>A. florea. Mean pollen gathering A. mellifera, A. cerana, A. dorsata and A. florea bees ranged
between 15.6-34.9, 10.3-22.2, 15.5-31.4 and 15.7-23.2 per cent, respectively. The mean proportion of top
foragers was in the order of A. dorsata>A. mellifera>A. cerana>A. florea. The highest mean number („000)
of loose pollen grains (17.7) was recorded from A. dorsata followed by that from A. mellifera (14.5) and A.
cerana (12.6) at 0900 h while on A. florea (6.8) at 1100 h. Pollination of broccoli by A. mellifera resulted in
359.5 siliquae per plant, 10.5 seeds per siliqua and 3.1 quintal seed yield per hectare whereas there was no
siliqua and seed setting under exclusion of pollinators. Five visits of A. mellifera resulted in the highest seed
weight per siliqua i.e. 29.4 mg while it was nil when there was no bee visit. A. mellifera was ranked as the
most efficient pollinator on the basis of its highest pollination index (3.48) while pollination efficiency of A.
mellifera was 16.9. Pollination requirement of broccoli was worked out to be one 10 bee-frame A. mellifera
colony per hectare. Mean quantity of nectar production was 560 μg per 25 flowers and the mean sugar
concentration of the nectar was 20.6 per cent. Honey production potential of broccoli was 4.0 kg per ha. On
turnip, the foraging intensity of the honey bees was in the order of A. mellifera>A. cerana>A. dorsata>A.
florea while the foraging rate was in the order of A. cerana>A. mellifera>A. dorsata>A. florea. Mean pollen
gathering A. mellifera, A. cerana, A. dorsata and A. florea bees ranged between 16.9-33.8, 10.5-21.3, 16.632.7
and 15.7-23.2 per cent, respectively. The mean proportion of top foragers was in the order of A.
dorsata>A. mellifera>A. cerana>A. florea. The highest mean number („000) of loose pollen grains (9.4)
was recorded from A. dorsata followed by that from A. mellifera (8.4) and A. cerana (8.0) at 0900 h while
on A. florea (3.6) at 1100 h. Pollination of turnip by A. mellifera resulted in 84.5, 44.9 and 263.6 per cent
increase in the number of pods per plant, number of seeds per pod and seed yield over exclusion of
pollinators. Five visits of A. mellifera resulted in the highest seed weight per pod i.e. 25.9 mg while it was
5.9 mg when there was no bee visit. A. mellifera was ranked as the most efficient pollinator on the basis of
its highest pollination index (3.50) while pollination efficiency of A. mellifera was 20.8. Pollination
requirement of turnip was worked out to be one 10 bee-frame A. mellifera colony per 2 hectares. Mean
quantity of nectar production was 435 μg per 25 flowers and the mean sugar concentration of the nectar was
39.1 per cent. Honey production potential of turnip was 3.5 kg per ha.
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