North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["tanis cuff" <tanistanis@hotmail.com>]

Ditto.  Lots of pollinators other than honeybees.  Plum- pear- apple blossom 
season is very lively; good pollination even this year w/ the awful weather. 
 But I'm wondering if I have a pear tree which needs honeybee or larger 
pollinator.

tc, s.WI, z4-5, mostly organic


> The mason bee discussion has me wondering how many of you all see
> non-honeybee pollinators on your fruit plants and their relative
> importance to your overall pollination?
>
> I know this year were it not for my local native bumblebees and
> southeastern blueberry bees I'd have seen very little pollination at
> all.  Since the weather first warmed this year I haven't seen more
> than a handful of honeybees.
>
> My Seminole pumpkins are still blossoming and the bumblebees will be
> in every new blossom as soon as it's light enough to see.
>
> .....Alan.


I get lots of other pollinators. I often can't tell what they are;
they're moving around too fast for me to get a good look (and I'm
running too fast to take the time to catch and inspect them). It's
definitely multiple species, though (including some bumblebees, but
also several smaller things); and I've had pollination even when there
were few if any honeybees flying.

--Rivka
Finger Lakes NY; zone 5
mostly organic management