Impact of Wild Bees (Apis cerana) and Stingless Bees (Tetragonula laeviceps) to Some Crops of Small-Scale Farm in West Java

Abstract

One of the essential ecosystem services which profoundly affect the human population is pollination. Studies in subtropical countries which applies modern and expansive agricultural systems showed the significant impact of pollinator agent. However, the study on pollination service impact on the productivity of farms in Indonesia is quite rare. This research was conducted to determine pollination efficiency both open pollination by wild bees (Apis cerana) and stingless bees (Tetragonula laeviceps) to the quality and quantity of green beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes in a monocropping system of a local small-scale farm. This research was conducted from January to April 2018 in Sukawangi Village, Pamulihan, Sumedang, West Java. The observation was started at 08.00-16.00 every five minutes during the flowering period. In these experiments, ten flowers that still not bloomed, in each of 10 plants per treatment were randomly selected. The effects of the pollinator were assessed by the visitation pattern of visits and plant reproductive success. This study showed that each of the pollination treatments did not affect the weight and the average length of all tested fruits. However, the application of stingless bees as pollinator revealed a significant difference in the average diameter (p=0.013) and fruit shape of the cucumbers.