Assessing the Effects of Site, Season, and Honey Bee Pollination on Fruit Set and Yield in Aonla (Emblica officinalis) Orchards

Aonla is a nutrient-rich, underutilized fruit crop in which efficient pollination increases yield. The study was carried out at two different locations in 2023 to determine the abundance of insect visitation and the effect of bee pollination on the yield of Aonla. The relative abundance of insect visitor studies revealed 22 and 17 species of insects visiting the Aonla flowers at locations I and II, respectively. Insect visitors were abundant during the 1000 – 1200 h period of the study. At location I, 11 species were hymenoptera, four were diptera, one was coleoptera, and four were lepidoptera. In contrast, in location II, nine were hymenoptera, three were diptera, one was coleoptera, and five were lepidoptera. Among these insect visitors of the hymenopteran family Apidae, Apis cerana indica and Tetragonula iridipennis were recorded to be the most frequent. To evaluate the influence of bee pollination on fruit set and yield, A. cerana indica and T. iridipennis colonies were placed in two different Aonla ecosystems. A significant increase (p=0.05) in fruit set (8.53–19.59%), retention (39.86–58.46%), and an increase in fruit weight (8.93–34.57 g), yield per tree (9.79–37.13%) was observed in treated plots compared to control plots in both locations. It is concluded that four colonies of T. iridipennis/ acre can improve pollination in Aonla flowers to a great extent.