Domestication of blue-banded bees for greenhouse pollination

番茄产业目前正在转向温室生产，这有助于控制气候和改善虫害管理。 缺少传粉者是这一行动的障碍。 该项目将为大规模使用本地蓝带蜜蜂作为温室授粉者，特别是番茄授粉者制定协议。本地蜜蜂的花粉使水果重量增加15%，与国外使用的大黄蜂的效果相当。 预计该项目将产生重大的经济、环境和健康效益。 其结果将满足行业需求，并通过寻找外来熊蜂的本土替代品来消除环境威胁。

The tomato industry is currently shifting towards production in greenhouses, which allows climate control and improved pest management. A lack of pollinators is an obstacle to this move. This project will establish protocols for large-scale use of native blue-banded bees as pollinators in greenhouses, especially for tomatoes. Pollination by native bees increases fruit weight by 15%, comparable to the effects of bumblebees used overseas. Significant economic, environmental and health benefits are expected from this project. The outcome will satisfy an industry need and remove an environmental threat by finding indigenous substitutes for alien bumblebees.