Selection of Insect Pollinators for Selfing Cages for Welsh Onion (Allium fistulosum L.) Seed Production
2012
Lee, K.Y., National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Suwon, Republic of Korea | Yoon, H.J., National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Suwon, Republic of Korea | Park, I.G., National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Suwon, Republic of Korea | Kim, M.A., National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Suwon, Republic of Korea | Kim, Y.M., National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Suwon, Republic of Korea | Kang, P.D., National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Suwon, Republic of Korea
Currently, flies are used to pollinate Welsh onion for seed production. However, the use of flies for pollination has caused problems in Welsh onion seed production due to sanitation issues, smell, and the difficulty of feeding the flies. Therefore, we investigated the effects of pollination with bumblebees (Bombus terrestris), flies (e.g., houseflies, flesh flies, blue bottle flies), mason bees (Osmia cornifrons), honeybees (Apis mellifera) and blowflies (Lucilia illustris) in a selfing cage (d=0.04m, h=0.5m) in onion culture for the F1 generation used in seed production. Although the number of flies was three to four times more than that of other insect pollinators. Flies and bumblebees showed equivalent pollination ratios, but the remaining three insect species showed lower values. For the percentage of seed set per umbel and the number of seeds, bumblebees and flies showed similar results. These results showed that pollination by bumblebees can be used as an alternative approach in breeding Welsh onion. An analysis of the most appropriate number of bumblebees for use as pollinators for breeding Welsh onion in selfing cages showed that ten to fifteen bees per cage was the most efficient level. The provision of sugar solution as a food resource near the bee colony resulted in a survival duration for working bees that was four times greater than the survival duration if no sugar solution was provided. This finding showed that the provision of a sugar solution is essential to the proper culture of a bumblebee colony for use in breeding Welshonion.
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