The collapse of the ubiquitous honey bee population during the past 20 years has caused a pollination vacuum for many crops. Surveys and grower experience indicate that a crisis exists in pollinator populations.
This book is an accessible, practical and authoritative research-based guide to using bees for crop pollination. It emphasizes conserving feral bee populations as well as more traditional methods of culturing honey bees and other bees. It addresses the biology of pollination, culturing and managing bees for optimum crop pollination. Individual pollination requirements and recommendations for the world's main crops are covered in 36 short chapters that make up the second part of the book.
Why bee pollination?; bee conservation; honey bees; bumble bees and alkali bees; orchard mason bees; bees and pesticides; priorities in technology development, research and education; individual crop pollination requirements and recommendations. (Part contents).