Bee
According to Prof. E.C. Martin, the value of bee pollination of fruits, vegetables and seeds in the United States of America totaled very close to $8 billion in the 1960s; the figure 20 years later is probably close to $20 billion.
We hardly takes even the slightest second to
appreciate how bee has helps us in our everyday lives.
A study reported that wild bee provide crop
pollination services worth more than $3,250 per hectare per year. Their value
to the food system is “in the billions, globally,” its authors wrote in the
journal Nature Communications. Over three years, researchers followed the
activities of nearly 74,000 bees from more than 780 species, to come to the
conclusion.
According to Prof. E.C. Martin, the value of bee pollination of fruits, vegetables and seeds in the United States of America totaled very close to $8 billion in the 1960s; the figure 20 years later is probably close to $20 billion.
Now, think about how much more it will be 60 years
since 1960s?
Pollination
is the transfer of pollen grains, the male sex cells of a flower, from the anther
where they are produce to the receptive surface, or stigma, of the female organ
of a flower. Since the honeybee is the most important insect that transfers
pollen between flowers and between plants, the word "pollination" is
often used to describe the service of providing bees to pollinate crop plants.
Honey bees are most active at temperatures between
60 degrees F. (16 degrees C.) and 105 degrees F. (41 degrees C.). Winds above
15 miles per hour reduce their activity and stop it completely at about 25
miles per hour. When conditions for flight are not ideal, honeybees work close
to their colonies.
The honeybee starts its foraging activity between
5:00 and 5:15 a.m. Flight usually depends on the weather and temperature. The
honeybee will not leave the hive if the temperature is below 14°C or if the wind
speed is above 30 kilometers per hour.
We must know that the following crops
must be pollinated by bees to produce fruit or seed:
Alfalfa
Apple
Apricot
Blackberry
Blueberry
Cherry
Clovers
Apple
Apricot
Blackberry
Blueberry
Cherry
Clovers
Sweet clovers
True clovers
Alsike
Ladino
White Dutch
True clovers
Alsike
Ladino
White Dutch
Cranberry
Cucumber
Muskmelon
Nectarine
Peach
Pear
Plum
Pumpkin
Raspberry
Squash
Sunflower
Trefoil
Watermelon
Muskmelon
Nectarine
Peach
Pear
Plum
Pumpkin
Raspberry
Squash
Sunflower
Trefoil
Watermelon
The following crops can set fruit or seed without
insect visits but yields and quality is improved by honeybees:
Eggplant
Grape
Lespedeza
Lima bean
Grape
Lespedeza
Lima bean
Okra
Pepper
Soybean
Strawberry.
Pepper
Soybean
Strawberry.
Now think about it.
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