Hi,

Your question: Does anyone know how we can measure the depth of nectar in flowers?

Nectar accessibility was determined by making HR digital scans of vertically dissected flowers and flower heads. The depth at which the nectar is produced ie., ‘flower depth’ is measured as the distance between the nectary and nearest side that is big enough for the hoverfly to enter with flower's body. 

Thank you Senthilvel Vasudevan.

So, to know what is the nearest side that is big enouph for the hoverfly, I must know which kid of pollinisators....

Do you have a book or an artical that talks about nectar and its position in flowers?

Thank you so much.

Hello Rachda,

I think the article "Are néctar composition and corolla tube lenght related to the diversity of insects that visit Asteraceae flowers?" will be interesting to you. Leonardo Galetto, Professor of Universidade Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina, have many studies about néctar production in flowers, this email:

[email protected]

Best regards.

Daniela Fuhro

Thank you Daniel; my question is how we can mesure or estimate the place of nectar in flowers? So, I am not looking for the amount of nectar availability. I need to know this because I study plant phenology and I want to explaint flowering.

In this book you can search many protocols:

https://openlibrary.org/books/OL22173385M/Practical_pollination_biology

Enjoy it.

Thank you Daniela but I could not download it!!

Hi Rachda

Attached here a paper dealing with nectar localization within the flower. However, the techniques used are very sophisticated.

Unfortunately, the book of Dieter Hess, "Die Blüte" (=The Flower), has never been translated into English. He describes that nectar may absorb long wave UV light and that it is possible (in a dark room) to see the fluorescence of the nectar. He mentions 'good objects' to see the fluorescence (and the nectaries) and to learn the technique: The flowers of e.g. Allium cepa as well as leek , Convolvulus, Daucus carota, Phacelia, and Prunus amygdalus.

Regards  - Thomas

Hi Thomas,

Thank you so much for your answer.

Best regards

Rachda