The pollination biology of onion (Allium cepa L.)- A Review

Managed pollination is an essential input in enhancing the crop productivity. In recent years, there has been an increase in the accumulation of data to indicate that seed yields of insect pollinated crops may often be lower than the expected, not because of adverse climatic, edaphic or cultural factors, but simply because the number of certain pollinators is inadequate. In absence of pollination in many entomophilous crops, fruit or seed set is affected adversely even if all the cultural practices are followed meticulously. Insect pollinators set a greater proportion of early flowers of the crop and increase quality and quantity of the seed yield. Before the use of managed pollination, it is necessary to have a basic knowledge of factors which influence pollinator activity and preference of the pollinators for different crops. This review summarizes the pollination biology of the important vegetable crop, Allium cepa L., commonly known as onion.