Tasty Talk

The Buzz on Food

to a garden as both honey and native bees help fruit set and produce higher yields. Bumble bees improve the fruit set and size of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants, as they vibrate the flowers and shake pollen loose from the anthers. In contrast, leafy greens, cole crops, root crops, legumes, and tuber crops do not require bees to produce an edible harvest.

Bees are a major contributor to floral landscapes and provide nourishing habitats for other animals. They pollinate about 80% of all flowering plants, in which one bee colony is known for pollinating 300 million flowers each day. So, it would make sense that they would be beneficial for a garden.

Pollination is the deposit of pollen grains from the anther (male structure) to the pistil (female structure) of the same plant species. Successful pollination results in the production of viable seeds and a fruit to protect them. While most crop plants are pollinated by insects or wind, many fruits and vegetables require or benefit from insect pollination. Common insect pollinators include butterflies, flies, and bees being the most important

If you notice your garden is producing female flowers, but no fruit develops, then the problem may be a lack of pollinators. Even fruit trees require proper pollination to produce an edible harvest. The amount of fruit or vegetables being produced is a result of how many times bees have visited that tree or plant. If you do not have bees, hand pollination can be conducted on plants by taking a paintbrush to gather the pollen inside the male flower and transferring it to the stigmas of an open female flower. This works best if done in the early morning when the anthers are open. Shaking tomato, pepper, and eggplant plants in the early morning can also be done in place of having pollinators. However, creating a pollinator habitat near the garden to attract bees is the best long-term solution for a good garden production without the time consuming task of hand pollinating all the plants.

Attracting pollinators is as simple as planting native flowering plants for a season-long bloom in or near the garden. Having a nesting habitat for ground and cavity-nesting bees is beneficial for their protection. Avoid spraying insecticides and fungicides on flowering plants or fruit trees just before or during bloom, as they are toxic to bees. All types of bees are essential pollinators, but honey bees also produce honey that can be harvested and consumed.

Over the past decade, the bee population has drastically declined. By working to create safe habitats for them, we are ensuring a higher yield of our florals and food crops. Home gardens especially benefit from bees, as the fruit set and higher crop yields with less human effort. For more information on bees and creating a habitat for them in your yard, contact the Old Regional Independence Museum. They have an educational bee class every first Saturday of the month. N