Many tomato growers introduced their bumblebee hives in the beginning of the growing season, some 8 to 10 weeks ago. This means that the activity of these bumblebee colonies is currently in decline.
However, now the first warm days of the season have arrived and tomato plants require an extra pollination effort. “During summer a tomato flower blossoms much more briefly than in winter,” says Wesley Akkermans, sustainable crop management at Biobest. “Sometimes a flower will blossom only 1 day during summer, instead of 3 in wintertime. Furthermore, more flowers per plant are in blossom during summer. So there is a lot more pollination work to be done.”
According to Wesley, you should anticipate this and introduce extra bumblebees. “Otherwise you take the risk of not getting optimal pollination in your crop,” he says.
Wesley advises installing an extra amount of 1 to 2 bumblebee nests per ha every week, depending on the tomato variety and the bumblebee species.
For more information
Biobest Belgium NV
Ilse Velden 18
2260 Westerlo - Belgium
T +32 14 25 79 80+32 14 25 79 80
F +32 14 25 79 82