Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39520394›Full record

ArticleJournal of economic entomology2025

Strategic honey bee hive placement improves honey bee visitation but not pollination in northern highbush blueberry.

Kayla Brouwer, Maxime Eeraerts, Emma Rogers, Lauren Goldstein, Jacquelyn A Perkins, Meghan O Milbrath, Andony Melathopoulos, Jason Meyer, Clark Kogan, Rufus Isaacs and 1 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of economic entomology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Kayla BrouwerDepartment of Horticulture, Washington State University, Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Center, Mount Vernon, WA, USA.
Maxime EeraertsDepartment of Horticulture, Washington State University, Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Center, Mount Vernon, WA, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-2739-9704
Emma RogersDepartment of Horticulture, Washington State University, Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Center, Mount Vernon, WA, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-2739-9704
Lauren GoldsteinDepartment of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-2557-9744
Jacquelyn A PerkinsDepartment of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-5336-1756
Meghan O MilbrathDepartment of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-7726-5854
Andony MelathopoulosDepartment of Horticulture, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA.
Jason MeyerPeerbolt Crop Management, Portland, OR, USA.
Clark KoganStatsCraft LLC, Spokane, WA, USA.
Rufus IsaacsDepartment of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7523-4643
Lisa Wasko DeVetterDepartment of Horticulture, Washington State University, Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Center, Mount Vernon, WA, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-4412-385X

Funding

Belgian American Educational FoundationFWO 1210723NNational Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), U.S. Department of Agriculture 2020-51181-32155NIFA Hatch project 1014919Specialty Crops Research Initiative
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Commercial blueberry Vaccinium spp. (Ericales: Ericaceae) production relies on insect-mediated pollination. Pollination is mostly provided by rented honey bees, Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae), but blueberry crop yields can be limited due to pollination deficits. Various hive placement strategies have been recommended to mitigate pollination shortfalls, but the effect of hive placement has received limited formal investigation. This study explores the effects of clumped and dispersed hive placement strategies on honey bee visitation and pollination outcomes in "Bluecrop" and "Duke" fields over 2 years (2021 and 2022) within 2 economically important regions of production in the United States-the Midwest (Michigan) and Pacific Northwest (Oregon and Washington). Clumping hives consistently increased honey bee visitation rate but did not result in higher fruit set, fruit weight, or seed count. Increases in honey bee visitation through clumping could perhaps improve pollination outcomes in more pollination-limited blueberry cultivars and other pollination-dependent crops. Clumping hives is substantially more efficient and cost-effective for beekeepers due to fewer drop locations and could lead to cost savings for both beekeepers and blueberry growers without growers sacrificing pollination levels and crop yields.

Indexed as

BeekeepingBlueberry PlantsPollinationAnimalsBeesMichiganOregonWashingtonApis melliferabeescrop pollinationhive placementVaccinium

Identifiers

PMID39520394
PMCPMC11818375

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.