Artificial Pollination: Definition, Methods and Advantages

Ans. When natural pollination is inadequate or unsuitable, artificial pollination is employed as a mechanical process done with the help of human intervention used to pollinate plants. It does not require the assistance of biotic elements like insects or abiotic elements like the wind.

There is unpredictability and a massive role of chance when natural pollination is taking place and this leads to lower production of crops and foodgrain. Lesser fruits and even if fruits are formed then the seed sets are inferior. Also, the limited crossing of different breeds of flowers leads to low resistance to herbivores, pathogens, and pests.

Ans. The advantages of artificial pollination are:

• The size of the fruits is larger and they have more seeds inside them.
• A higher number of flowers can be used to produce fruits to export internationally.
• It is a more certain phenomenon as naturally pollination is based on chance and is very uncertain. 
• A large number of hybrid varieties of plants and their flowers can be grown.

Ans. Pollen is manually transferred from one plant's stamen to another's pistil in this method of pollination. The plant from which pollen is collected is known as the pollen donor or pollen parent, whereas the plant from which pollen is received is known as the seed parent. Hand-pollination is generally done through a small brush or cotton swab. It can also take place through brushing petals of the male flowers against the stigmas of female flowers or simply shaking bisexual flowers such tomatoes. Plants with pollen concentrated in a mass termed the pollinium, such as orchids, are an exception. A tiny utensil is utilized in this scenario to which the pollinia will adhere.

Ans. There are 3 different methods of Artificial Pollination 

• Method 1 - Monoecious plants (vegetable plants with separate male and female parts) are the most common candidates for this strategy. M ale flowers are taken and their petals in this procedure. To avoid pollen transmission to our hands, we must perform this procedure without contacting the stamen. Following that, we must locate a flowering female plant with its petals pushed back. Finally, we must touch the stamens of the male flower to the stigma of the female flower, then roll them evenly and softly to ensure that pollen is delivered to the stigma and pollination occurs. 
• Method 2 - To capture as many pollen grains as possible, we have to scrape the stamens with cotton over the male flowers in the second method. After that, we must spread the pollen we've collected over the female flower's stigma.
• Method 3 - This strategy is most effective for plants that self-pollinate, such as tomatoes, beans, and peppers. We typically place fans over their branches to shake the stems and allow pollen grains to settle over the stigma. This is known as mechanical pollination.

Ans. Pollen grains are manually transferred to the stigma in artificial pollination.

Plant breeders, on the other hand, now use artificial pollination to generate new varieties. Breeders choose two distinct types of crop plants with desirable traits and pollinate them with pollen from the particular plant variety. 

Artificial pollination is a procedure in which pollination does not occur spontaneously but is instead influenced by humans, who move pollen from one flower to another, fertilizing the blossoms.

The pollen grains of the desired flower are deposited on the stigma of an emasculated flower, i.e. a flower that has had its anther removed. In this procedure, natural pollination is influenced by a variety of elements, including the vector population (natural biotic pollinators that aid in pollination, such as honeybees) and the abiotic condition like the weather.

Pollen production and transport might be harmed by poor weather conditions. Pollen transmission by vectors can also be hampered by a variety of causes, including illnesses and pesticide treatment. Plant breeders can use artificial pollination to help them overcome these issues. It also assists them in developing a new and improved variety of crops with the necessary characteristics by assisting them in cross-breeding and pollination.

Ans. These are the following examples of artificial pollination:

1. Kiwifruit
2. Almonds
3. Cherries
4. Pears
5. Pumpkins
6. Olives

Ans. Pollen deficiencies are seen in most plants during adverse weather conditions. The most prevalent reason for pollen deficiency is adverse environmental circumstances during blossom time, or even earlier. Pollen production and quality may suffer as a result of these circumstances, as well as pollen dissemination. Pollen transfer in wind-pollinated species may be hampered by heavy rain and high gusts, or by prevailing winds blowing in the incorrect direction. Similarly, when weather conditions such as wind, rain, or extreme temperatures exist, bees and other pollinators' activity drops. In the main growth locations of Kiwifruit in South Africa, these conditions occur during bloom, severely hindering natural pollination. Pollinators with parasites or illnesses can inhibit insect-pollinated species from pollinating. These extreme weather conditions are solved using artificial pollination methods like hand-pollination or mechanical pollination.

Ans. Artificial pollination may allow for complete control of pollination: the best pollen can be chosen and applied at the most opportune time and in sufficient quantities to provide a desirable yield. Artificial pollination has proven to be so effective in some crops, such as Cherimoya, that production control is nearly complete. The number of fruits to be produced and their distribution in the canopy can be determined in this crop by pollinating chosen flowers (either to not overload shoots or to make harvesting easier). By pollinating at specific times, you may manage both the harvest dates and the number of harvest procedures. Furthermore, by varying the amount of pollen given to the flower, it is possible to influence the quality, size, and symmetry of the fruits to some extent; even fruit features such as fruit size and seediness can be somewhat controlled by pollen genotype selection.