FLOWER PRODUCTION AND POLLINATION IN MEDICAGO SATIVA L. GROWN FOR SEED: MODEL AND MONITORING STUDIES

Little information is available about the rate of flower bloom in alfalfa as a component of potential seed yield.
Monitoring studies suggest that alfalfa flower production in commercial alfalfa fields declines exponentially over the season (after an initial burst of bloom). In addition, standing crop of open flowers declines exponentially at a more rapid rate than flower production, suggesting that the decline in standing crop of flowers is due in part to increasing pollinator activity.
A model of alfalfa pollination predicts a similar decline in flower standing crop over the season as pollination increases, especially if flower production declines exponentially with increasing pod development.
As the number of foraging bees increases, the standing crop of open flowers decreases and thus pollination is completed sooner.
These results offer an explanation for the recommendation that seed yields are maximized when pollination occurs rapidly and is completed quickly.

VII International Symposium on Pollination

K. Strickler

Megachile rotundata, standing crop, alfalfa, systems model

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1997.437.9