Avoid pesticides in litchi orchards to protect fruits and pollination

Muzaffarpur: Litchi is a wonderful fruit famous for its natural beauty and sweetness. The orchard looks like a paradise when litchi trees bloom. During this time, bees start buzzing in the litchi orchards and begin pollination. These small pollinators work tirelessly, ensuring that flowers are fertilized and fruits develop properly. A gentle humming can be heard if one passes through the litchi orchards during flowering.

Careful farmers install 20 to 25 bee boxes per hectare in their orchards to boost production and ensure effective pollination. This improves the pollination process, leading to a higher fruit yield. Additionally, farmers obtain high-quality honey, which serves as an extra source of income.

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Litchi trees are evergreen and well-known for their fragrant and delicate flowers. These flowers are usually white or pale yellow, small in size (about 5-6 mm in diameter), and grow in large clusters of 300-500 flowers, called inflorescences. A single inflorescence can be around 20-30 cm long and hangs from the branches. The flowering season depends on the climate, but it generally occurs between March and May.

Farmers need to avoid using pesticides or chemical sprays because these chemicals can harm the flowers, making them weak or causing them to die, which negatively affects fruit yield. Besides this, pesticides are also dangerous for bees; if affected, they will leave the orchards, disrupting pollination.

Therefore, wise horticulturists always avoid using harmful chemicals and adopt natural methods to protect both litchi flowers and bees. By doing this, they ensure an ample harvest of both fruits and honey.