Bees increase crop yield in an alleged pollinator-independent almond variety.

ABSTRACT: Wild pollinators are declining and the number of managed honey bee colonies is growing slower than agricultural demands for pollination. Because of these contrasting trends in pollinator demand and availability, breeding programs for many pollinator-dependent crops have focused on reducing the need for pollinators. Although numerous crop varieties are now available in the market with the label of pollinator-independent, the real dependence of these varieties on pollinators is mostly unknown. We evaluated the hypothesis of pollinator independence in the Independence almond variety, the fastest growing variety in California that is the main almond production region in the world. In this presumed pollinator-independent variety, we measured the effect of honey bees on fruit set, yield, and ker

SUBMITTER: Saez A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7035345 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature