Subject: Honeybee / Flower interaction musings .....

From: kniemann@canetoad (131J50000-NiemannK(DR3279)300)
Date: Mon, 28 Aug 1995 23:59:05 GMT

I was just reading the article about Squash flowers and honeybees and I
got to wondering....

Does a bee "know" if a flower has already been visited by a pollinator ?

If you think about why bees are at the flowers, it is to get the
nectar. Wouldn't it make sense that they could tell if a flower was
depleted of nectar by some previous visitor ? If yes then how do they
do it ? If not, does that mean that they visit the same flower over and
over until it is not a flower any more ?

Do flowers replenish their nectar supply ? If so for how long? Until
they are fertilized ?

I understand that if you look at a flower in the UV spectrum that it
has patterns on it that look like runways or directional arrows
pointing inward. Presumably these are to attract and direct
pollinators. Do these markings change over time ? Are there any
physical changes to the flower when pollination has occured ?

Enough questions. Time to go home and walk among my squash.

All the Best
Karl

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From: [email-masked] (Gerard Worrell)
Date: 29 Aug 1995 11:58:51 GMT

131J50000-NiemannK(DR3279)300 (kniemann@canetoad) wrote:

:  I was just reading the article about Squash flowers and honeybees and I
: got to wondering....

Not sure what article you were quoting. Please cite reference.

: Does a bee "know" if a flower has already been visited by a pollinator ?

: If you think about why bees are at the flowers, it is to get the
: nectar.
Two things a honeybee goes after in a flower nectar and POLLEN. How well 
a flower is pollinated depends usually on multiple visits to the flower.
 
: Wouldn't it make sense that they could tell if a flower was
: depleted of nectar by some previous visitor ? If yes then how do they
: do it ? If not, does that mean that they visit the same flower over and
: over until it is not a flower any more ?

: Do flowers replenish their nectar supply ? If so for how long? Until
: they are fertilized ?
Cucurbits are poor sources of nectar and commercial pollinators in our 
area have to feed in order that the bees don't starve. I have yet to see 
anyone market cucumber or squash honey yet an awful lot of bees are used 
for pollination. 
Jerry Worrell,Dunkirk MD

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From: [email-masked] (Pollinator)
Date: 29 Aug 1995 09:24:24 -0400

In article <[email-masked]>, kniemann@canetoad
(131J50000-NiemannK(DR3279)300) writes:

>Subject:	Honeybee / Flower interaction musings .....
>From:	kniemann@canetoad (131J50000-NiemannK(DR3279)300)
>Date:	Mon, 28 Aug 1995 23:59:05 GMT
>
>
> I was just reading the article about Squash flowers and honeybees
>and I got to wondering....

   Where did you see the article?  We'd like to see it, too.

>If you think about why bees are at the flowers, it is to get the nectar.

   Not necessarily.  Bees also gather pollen, which is the protein supply,
mostly used for brood and the young bees who secrete royal jelly.

   When bees gather nectar, they may accomplish some pollination, but they
do a much better job, when deliberately gathering pollen.

   Watch the bees work on your squash.  If they are gathering nectar, they
will extend their tongue and sip, then fly away.  If they are gathering
pollen, they will *doggie-paddle* through the stamens, to get as much as
possible on their own body fuzz.

    For commercial pollination, we want this.  Therefore we use hives that
are still building, which have a lot of brood to be fed, thus forcing the
bees to gather more pollen.  I want to see as much of that brood open as I
can get.  That means young, vigorous queens, plenty of room to lay, etc. 
Sometimes we stimulate them by feeding syrup during cucurbit pollination. 
 Squash, cukes, and melons do not produce much nectar.  If there are no
nectar sources in the neighboring area, the queen may shut down, and
pollination value of the hive is lost.

    For good honey production you manage in order to get the hive to peak
population, and shutting down on brood production, just as the flow
starts. Pollination management strives to have the hive about two weeks
earlier in the cycle, just as the crop starts blooming.

>Does a bee "know" if a flower has already been visited by a pollinator ?

   I suspect bees leave odor trails, but I would also hope that wouldn't
stop other bees.  We want to get the bee into the blossom many times.  It
takes a lot more than one visit to get a good cuke, or squash.

   I've seen whole fields of one-visit-type pollination.  Cukes are
deformed, one end large, other small, some curled, etc.  Yellow squash
with wrinkled body, not much bigger than the neck.  Each seed needs a
grain of pollen.  Pollination releases the chemicals that make the flesh
grow, so we want as many seeds as possible pollinated, to make perfect
fruit.

   If you look at the blossom, you will see that the pollen gets used up. 
On squash, with plenty of bees, you can see that there is no more pollen,
often before noon.

   If well pollinated, the flowers wilt quicker.  If not pollinated, the
bloom stays open longer.  This quick wilt when pollinators are plentiful,
sometimes alarms farmers.

   Watch a while, and tell me what you see.

[email-masked]
[email-masked]                                   Dave Green
Dave's Pollination Service         Eastern Pollinator Newsletter
PO Box 1215, Hemingway, SC    29554