During the flowering season of the safflower, the said plant is being visited not only by honey bees but by numerous other bees and other nectar and pollen-sucking insects. These may play a part in different degrees to pollination of the flower but in comparative amounts, honey bees are certainly the most eminent. Zero variances have been monitored in pleasant appearance of various cultivars to honey bees. Every cultivar appeared to be appealing. The detail structures of the safflower can be magnified under the microscope such as stereo binocular microscope. Other minute details of the flower of the safflower plant like its stamens, anthers and styles can be observed clearly using microscopy by means of stereo binocular microscope.
Possibly, the most excellent examination of the worth of the pollinating insects to the safflower was performed by the researcher Ariz Tucson with the aid of microscopy using the stereo binocular microscope. In this duplicated experiment with two cultivars, the plots were revealed to insect pollinator that made visits during the flowering time of the safflower plant, and the results of the observation of the two cultivars were evaluated with the plots that were caged under the plastic screen. Pollinating insects were barred from plants of certain cages, whereas a working colony of honey bees was added up to the plants of other cages. By the way, the minute details of the pollinators themselves can also be examined via microscopy using the stereo binocular microscope. There were two lines of safflower that were utilized. The line A was a variety from the Gila cultivar, which typically displayed around five percent outcrossing, while line B was a combination of multiple crosses of the thin-hull variety, which typically displayed around eighty percent outcrossing. The yield of line A was amplified by approximately five percent by bees, while yield of line B was roughly twice than its previous production.
Another team of researchers also concluded that the advantages of honey bees or other pollinating insects to industrial cultivars relied on the quantity of self-sterility or crossability in a given cultivar. They said that Frio cultivar was lesser in self-fertility as compared with the Gila cultivar. Thus, the production improvement from pollinating insect action on the former would be anticipated to be higher than the latter. They stated that yield of Gila, although it was deemed to be self-fertile might possibly be boosted up to five percent or more through honey bee pollination. Obviously, some researchers were also in conformity for they said that since safflower is not wind-pollinated, the existence of pollinating insects in great quantity was needed for optimum seed set in types that were lacking in generation of pollen as observed via microscopy using the stereo binocular microscope.
It was suggested that two honey bee colonies for every acre of safflower should be utilized, but hardly any if there is planters should take steps to obtain this pollinator population. Since safflower is a very good source of nectar and pollen, beekeepers oftentimes situate their colonies close to safflower cultivation. The information denote that even though the safflower has a great level of fertility, the planter would gain further than the beekeeper would by using a high population of honey bees visiting the safflower blossoms.