<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Oil peony (<italic>Paeonia</italic> spp.) is a new type of woody oil crop in China with a large cultivation area. Inadequate pollination is one of the main reasons for low seed yield. A pollination net room was built at an oil tree peony base, the numbers of honeybees (<italic>Apis mellifera</italic> L.) and ground bumblebees (<italic>Bombus terrestris</italic> L.) were artificially increased and the foraging behaviors and daily activities of the two bees on the plants were observed. Four different pollination methods (honeybee pollination, ground bumblebee pollination, natural field pollination and pollination without insects) were applied. The visit interval, single-flower visit time, number of single-flower visits, number of flowers visited per minute and number of stigma contacts were compared. Meanwhile, the effects of honeybee and bumblebee pollination on the oil yield and quality of peony seeds were compared. There were noticeable differences in daily activity between honeybees and ground bumblebees. Significant differences in the single-flower visit time, visit interval and visit frequency were also observed; honeybee and ground bumblebee pollination increased the seed yield of oil tree peony by 78.74% and 31.88%, respectively. Therefore, both honeybees and ground bumblebees are effective pollinators of oil tree peony. These results provide a theoretical basis for further utilization of bee resources for oil tree peony pollination.</p></abstract>

Oil peony (Paeonia spp.) is a new type of woody oil crop in China with a large cultivation area. Inadequate pollination is one of the main reasons for low seed yield. A pollination net room was built at an oil tree peony base, the numbers of honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) and ground bumblebees (Bombus terrestris L.) were artificially increased and the foraging behaviors and daily activities of the two bees on the plants were observed. Four different pollination methods (honeybee pollination, ground bumblebee pollination, natural field pollination and pollination without insects) were applied. The visit interval, single-flower visit time, number of single-flower visits, number of flowers visited per minute and number of stigma contacts were compared. Meanwhile, the effects of honeybee and bumblebee pollination on the oil yield and quality of peony seeds were compared. There were noticeable differences in daily activity between honeybees and ground bumblebees. Significant differences in the single-flower visit time, visit interval and visit frequency were also observed; honeybee and ground bumblebee pollination increased the seed yield of oil tree peony by 78.74% and 31.88%, respectively. Therefore, both honeybees and ground bumblebees are effective pollinators of oil tree peony. These results provide a theoretical basis for further utilization of bee resources for oil tree peony pollination.

Foraging Behavior of Honeybees (<italic>Apis Mellifera</italic> L.) and Ground Bumblebees (<italic>Bombus Terrestris</italic> L.) and its Influence on Seed Yield and Oil Quality of Oil Tree Peony Cultivar ‘Fengdan’ (<italic>Paeonia Ostii</italic> T. Hong et J. X. Zhang)

Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Journal of Apicultural Science

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Foraging Behavior of Honeybees ( L.) and Ground Bumblebees ( L.) and its Influence on Seed Yield and Oil Quality of Oil Tree Peony Cultivar ‘Fengdan’ ( T. Hong et J. X. Zhang)

Oil peony (Paeonia spp.) is a new type of woody oil crop in China with a large cultivation area. Inadequate pollination is one of the main reasons for low seed...

Foraging Behavior of Honeybees (Apis Mellifera L.) and Ground Bumblebees (Bombus Terrestris L.) and its Influence on Seed Yield and Oil Quality of Oil Tree Peony Cultivar ‘Fengdan’ (Paeonia Ostii T. Hong et J. X. Zhang)

Article Category: Original Article

Published Online: Jul 02, 2020

Page range: 131 - 142

Received: Oct 17, 2019

Accepted: Apr 22, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jas-2020-0014

Keywords
foraging behavior, oil peony, oil quality, pollination ecology, seed production

© 2020 Erica G. Lima et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Foraging Behavior of Honeybees (Apis Mellifera L.) and Ground Bumblebees (Bombus Terrestris L.) and its Influence on Seed Yield and Oil Quality of Oil Tree Peony Cultivar ‘Fengdan’ (Paeonia Ostii T. Hong et J. X. Zhang)

Article Category: Original Article

Published Online: Jul 02, 2020

Page range: 131 - 142

Received: Oct 17, 2019

Accepted: Apr 22, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jas-2020-0014

Keywordsforaging behavior, oil peony, oil quality, pollination ecology, seed production

© 2020 Erica G. Lima et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
foraging behavior, oil peony, oil quality, pollination ecology, seed production