Effect of Bee Attractants on Bee Activities and Production of Bottle Gourd

A field investigation was carried out to study the effect of bee attractants on pollinator activity and the production of bottle gourd. The experiment was conducted at Horticulture Farm, Sriniketan during Kharif 2022 in a randomized block design with three replications. The treatment consists of eight indigenous bee attractants (jaggery solution @ 10%, sugar solution @ 10%, sugarcane juice solution @ 10%, honey solution @ 10%, cumin seed oil @ 0.5%, fennel seed oil @ 0.5%, dill seed oil @ 0.5% and rose water), and control. A total of 15 insect and non-insect species belonging to 10 families and 6 orders were found visiting the bottle gourd flowers during the experiment. Peak bees' activity was observed around 11 AM to 2 PM. Bee attractants increased the bee population irrespective of treatments and time intervals (on spray day and two consecutive days after spray). The effect of bee attractants was more pronounced on Apis cerena indica (Indian Bee) than on Melipona sp. (Stingless bee). In most cases Jaggery @ 10% spray attracts maximum honeybees regardless of different times and days after spray, followed by sugar solution (10%) and rose water. Jaggery @ 10% plots showed the early emergence of male (49.3) and female flowers (57.0) and also the days to male to female flowering (7.7). Application of jaggery @ 10% showed maximum number of fruits per plot (29.3), fruit length (8.1cm), fruit diameter (15.9cm) and fruit yield per plot (32.4kg). Maximum fruit yield ha-1 (216q) was registered in 10% jaggery-treated plots, followed by sugar solution (10%) treated plots (213.2q). Fragrant oils (cumin, fennel and dill seed oil), honey, rosewater and sugarcane juice-treated plots showed mixed responses for yield traits but mostly were superior to the control. Application of jaggery (10%) or sugar (10%) solution thrice (at 30%, 50% and 75% flowering stage) can be suggested to the bottle gourd growers of the Red and Laterite Zone of West Bengal for yield enhancement.