Enhancement of fruit quality in Capsicum annum through pollination by Hypotrigona gribodoi in Kakamega, Western Kenya
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Date
2014Author
Nkoba, Kiatoko
Suresh, Kumar Raina
Muli, Elliud
Mueke, Jone
Language
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
A study was carried out in Kakamega forest, in the western region of Kenya, to evaluate the effectiveness of
the stingless bee Hypotrigona gribodoi (Magretti, 1884) on the pollination of green pepper. Three treatments
were applied and consisted of self-pollination, pollination by feral pollinators in the open field and
pollination by H. gribodoi in a net cage. The differences in fruit yield and seed quality were compared among
treatments. Flowers pollinated by H. gribodoi produced the heaviest fruits with the highest seed numbers
followed by feral pollinators and lastly self-pollinated flowers. Moreover, seeds were significantly bigger
in size in fruits resulting from flowers pollinated by H. gribodoi compared to fruits obtained from selfpollinated
flowers or flowers pollinated by feral insects. We, therefore, conclude that H. gribodoi is an
efficient pollinator of green pepper in the tropical region of East Africa.
Citation
Kiatoko, Nkoba, et al. "Enhancement of fruit quality in Capsicum annum through pollination by Hypotrigona gribodoi in Kakamega, Western Kenya." Entomological Science 17.1 (2014): 106-110.Publisher
University of Nairobi,