"A small, stingless bee may be able to raise coffee yields while fitting into real-world pest control programs, according to a new study from Brazil. In a field study on full-sun arabica farms, researchers reported a 67% higher fruit yield on coffee branches closer to colonies of the native stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis, compared with branches farther away. The study was recently published in Frontiers in Bee Science."
"For the new study, the researchers studied six conventional farms in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais and São Paulo. They placed S. depilis colonies at a density of 10 colonies per hectare, then compared yield on branches within 50 meters of colonies versus branches about 200-300 meters away. The new research follows a 2022 global meta-analysis that found animal pollination increased arabica fruit set by about 18% on average across 11 case studies."
A field experiment on full-sun arabica farms in Brazil found 67% higher fruit yield on branches within 50 meters of Scaptotrigona depilis colonies compared with branches 200–300 meters away. Colonies were placed at a density of 10 per hectare across six conventional farms in Minas Gerais and São Paulo. Colonies on conventional farms showed comparable brood production and brood mortality to colonies on organic farms despite low residues of insecticides detected in leaves, nectar, and pollen. Managed stingless bees enhanced coffee production without measurable detrimental effects under label-compliant neonicotinoid use, indicating potential for sustainable productivity gains.
Read at Daily Coffee News by Roast Magazine
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