Studies on abundance and visitation rate of pollinators in radish (Raphanus sativus L.)

Radish, (Raphanus sativus L.,) a popular edible root vegetable (Family: Brassicaceae), is a highly crosspollinated crop completely dependent on pollinators for seed set and yield. The present study was carried out at the experimental field of ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bengaluru, during the rabi, 2020–2021, to study the foraging behaviour of insect pollinators of R. sativus. Results indicated that four insect species from Hymenoptera viz., Apis florea, Apis dorsata, Tetragonula iridipennis, and Apis cerana and a butterfly, Delias eucharis (common jezebel larva), were observed visiting radish flowers. Peak insect visitor activity was observed between 09.00 A.M. to10.00 A.M. and 12.00 P.M. to 01.00 P.M. during peak flowering time in January. Among the four species of honey bees, T. iridipennis was the most abundant (29%), followed by A. cerana (28%), A. florea (25%) and Apis dorsata (18%).