The effect Of insect pollination on plant development and seed production in winter oil-seed rape (Brassica napus L.)

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Abstract
Summary: The effect of insect pollination on plant development and seed yield of winter oil-seed rape, cultivar Jet Neuf, was investigated by comparing plots caged with a honeybee colony, plots caged to exclude insects and plots uncaged and 'open-pollinated' by naturally occurring insects. Plants in the bee-pollinated plots finished flowering earlier, showed more advanced pod growth, and were shorter than those in the plots without bees. Pods from the plots with honeybees contained more seed post-flowering than those from plots without honeybees but the proportion of them that grew into mature seeds for harvest was determined by water availability during seed growth.