Pollination biology

• Pollination is the process by which pollen is

transferred in the reproduction of plants, thereby
enabling fertilisation and the production of fruit and
seeds (sexual reproduction).
• Abiotic pollination: pollination without the
involvement of other living organisms (e.g. wind or
water). Only 10% of flowering plants are pollinated
without animal assistance.
• Biotic pollination: pollination by a pollinator (insects
are the most important pollinating animals, but birds,
bats and
rodents are also
pollinators of some
plants).
 Self- & cross-pollination
• CROSS-POLLINATION: the transfer of pollen from an
anther of the flower of one plant to a stigma of the
flower of another plant.
• SELF-POLLINATION:
fertilisation by
transfer of pollen from
the anthers of a flower
to the stigma of the
same flower (autogamy)
or to the stigma of n
another flower on the
Self: no exchange of genetic material
same plant (geitonogamy)Cross: exchange of genetic material
 Agents of pollination
Cross-pollination depends on insects visiting flowers of
the same species in sequence. To help ensure that this
happens, the plants have various characteristics that
help pollinators locate the right flowers, including the
colour, size, shape and scent of the flowers, as well as
the food reward.
Sunbird:
tubular,
colourful
flowers
Honeybee:
many varied
flower types
Beetles: flat or cup-
shaped (big) flowers
Parts of the flower
 Importance of honeybees &
their relationship to our food
ECOLOGICAL VALUE OF POLLINATION
- Valuable in their own right
- Part of ecology

HUMAN VALUE OF POLLINATION

- Crops for human food + animal fodder
- Fibres, wood and other materials
- Plant breeding & flowers
- Medicines
- Aesthetic value
 Pollinators and our food
Insect pollination is essential for 35% of global food
production. “You can thank an insect pollinator for 1 out of
every 3 bites of food you eat!”
Insects pollinate the flowers of the fruit and vegetable
plants we rely on for a healthy and balanced diet… (apples,
melons, pumpkin, avo’s, etc)
…while most of the staple food plants can self-pollinate or
are wind-pollinated (like maize and wheat), or reproduce
vegetatively (like potatoes).
A world without insect pollinators would mean a world of
far fewer food choices, more expensive food, and vastly
different agriculture.
 Honeybees
Many commercial pollinator-dependent crops are reliant on the
honeybee as their pollinator.
For most South African crops, honeybees are the most
economically valuable pollinators because they are:
- Very effective pollinators.
- Indigenous (i.e. they are naturally found here).
- They can be managed in the huge numbers needed to supply
the pollination service to our large-scale commercial crops.
Beekeepers supply the pollination service to growers/farmers, as
well as harvest the honey from the bees to bottle and sell.
 Honeybees in South Africa
• Two sub-species: Apis mellifera capensis and A.m. scutellata.
• Both good pollinators, especially if handled correctly.
• Wild & managed populations are the same, as they are indigenous
honeybees; and because beekeepers trap swarms and sometimes
managed bees swarm off into the wild.
• Eucalyptus flowers probably responsible for >60% of honey production
in South Africa.
• Some beekeepers migrate 2 500km/yr
following honey flows.
• 87% of colonies in W. Cape used for
commercial pollination (~60k hives).
• ‘New’ threats: Varroa mite, AFB,
pesticides, forage limits, theft…
• SA honeybees populations may not be
as healthy as we believe.
 What’s for dinner?
Examples of parts of the plant we eat:
• Flowers: broccoli, cauliflower.
• Fruit: apple, peach, tomato, cucumber, pumpkin,
avocado, watermelon, bean.
• Stems: sugar!, asparagus, celery, potatoes
(modified stem).
• Leaves: lettuce, cabbage, tea, Brussels sprouts.
• Roots: carrot, sweet potato, radish.
• Seeds: nuts, maize/corn, peas, rice.
Know your veg pollination!
Pollination requirements of vegetables can be discussed according to
what part of the plant is eaten:
• If the ‘vegetable’ is a ‘fruit’ then pollination is required both for
the production of the vegetable AND for seed production; e.g.
tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, peas, beans, pumpkins, marrows,
butternut, cucumbers, etc.

• If the ‘vegetable’ is in the form of leaves or shoots (e.g. lettuce,

cabbage, kohlrabi, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, spinach, Swiss
Chard, leeks, onions, etc.) or is a ‘storage root’ (e.g. carrots,
beetroot, turnip, parsnip, etc.) then pollination is not required or
desired for the production of the vegetable, but ONLY for seed
production.

• If the ‘vegetable’ is a ‘storage stem’ then pollination

is not required for EITHER the production of the
vegetable or seed because seed is not required for
propagation; e.g. potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes.
 Chemical
misuse

Threats to honeybees
& what we can do

American Foulbrood
Varroa mite on
honeybee larva
 Stress on honeybee health in SA
• Pests and diseases (American Foulbrood, Varroa mite).
• Chemicals such as pesticides.
• Global change factors (e.g. land use change & climate
change).
• Over-working during the pollination season (being moved
large distances in short timeframes).
• Scarcity of good forage resources.

Many of the stresses that affect honeybees also impact

other wild insect pollinators, and therefore any efforts we
make at protecting the honeybee should help protect our
wild insect pollinators.
 Scarcity of good forage resources
• Land use changes (such as urbanisation or
deforestation) may lead to habitat degradation
and destruction.
• Intensified agriculture and forestry practices
contribute to:
– loss of surrounding natural vegetation (monocultures).
– planting of nutrient-poor crops and non-flowering
cultivars.
• Removal of good forage resources, such as some
Eucalyptus some indigenous species.
 Illustration of forage provision to managed honeybees in
the Western Cape as an example of the diversity of forage
used during the year

canola apples
eucalyptus Weeds (e.g. ramenas) eucalyptus eucalyptus
Jan-Feb Apr - June Jul-Aug Sep-Oct Nov-Dec

Fynbos pears
citrus
fynbos
Some pollination-
dependent crops
are not good forage
Build-up for honeybees, and
Fynbos honey & Swarm Pollination provide only
Honey variable nutrition.
/ maintenance trapping season
 What we can do
• The planting of honeybee-friendly plants can
help the issue of the scarcity of forage resources.
• Campaign for the planting of honeybee-friendly plants in
your neighbourhood (e.g. city parks, in gardens, along road
verges).
• Never kill honeybees or other pollinators with chemicals.
• Find out about the fruit and vegetables that you buy (are
they in season, have chemicals been applied correctly and
in a bee-friendly manner?).
• Become a researcher or help researchers. Much research
is still needed, e.g. the impacts of climate change;
pollination research; hive strength; etc.