Enhance pollination with bumblebees

Honeybees don’t like cold and cloudy conditions – which may occur even in the south of Spain and the north of Morocco at this time of the year. For early blooming strawberry, raspberry and blueberry crops, this means pollination can be erratic and even outright problematic.

“It’s better to be safe than sorry,” says Julien Mourrut-Salesse. “Bumblebees are efficient and reliable, whatever the weather. Relying on natural pollinators or honeybees only is risky.”

“We offer specific hive boxes for outdoor pollination such as the Multi HiveTM, a polystyrene hive box developed by Biobest. It protects bumblebees from cold and rain, and is thus ideal for outdoor use or for cold production in tunnels. Even when it’s cold outside, the temperature inside the hive is ideal for the bumblebees.”

“In nectar-rich crops like raspberry and blueberry, we recommend to close the access to the BioglucTM (sugar) bottle inside the hive when temperatures are above an average of 14°C. This will also contribute to maximize flight activity of the hive.”