Mustard is a self-pollinating crop and it also provides nectar and pollen resources to pollinators like the honey bee but in return what do bee gave to mustard ?
Please check the links given below.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1978301916303692
http://labs.biology.ucsd.edu/nieh/TeachingBee/eds_importance.htm
Mustard probably benefits to the presence of pollinators (particularily honey bees) in a similar way than oilseed rape:
"The honeybee, Eristalis hoverflies and bumblebees (especially Bombus sensu stricto and B. lapidarius) were the best pollinators of winter oilseed rape based on the number of pollen grains they carry, visitation rates per flower and their relative abundance per field. Exclusion of pollinators resulted in a 27 % decrease in the number of seeds produced, and a 30 % decrease in seed weight per pod in winter crops, with comparable values from a spring oilseed rape field also."
See the link below:
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10841-013-9599-z
Pradeep:
You would find this link useful:
http://www.academicjournals.org/journal/AJAR/article-full-text-pdf/6A2202143995
Best
Syed
Even though the cultivated mustard is self pollinated, its spontaneous pollination (without pollinator help) is not efficient. The bee visiting the mustard flower enhances both self- and cross-pollination.
Kindly also have a look at this link wherein (Chapter 9) the importance of Bees are stressed for self-pollinating crop of Mustard:
https://www.ars.usda.gov/ARSUserFiles/20220500/OnlinePollinationHandbook.pdf
Best
Syed
See also the following interesting paper:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/231809391_Some_aspects_of_pollination_of_oil-seed_rape_Brassica_napus_L?ev=prf_pub
Article Some aspects of pollination of oil-seed rape ( Brassica napus L.)
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