management of bee communities by intercropping with flowering basil (Ocimum basilicum) enhances pollination and yield of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum)

Enhancements of floral resources in surrounding landscape and in local crop fields are expected to mitigate adverse human impacts on pollinator diversity and pollination services. We evaluated whether intercropping with flowering basil (Ocimum basilicum) increases the local abundance and richness of bees and improves fruit and seed production of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum). Fields of bell pepper were divided into intercropping (basil mixed with pepper) and single-cropping plots (only pepper). We also grew bell peppers in protected greenhouse in the presence and absence of beehives. The richness and abundance of visiting bees to pepper flowers were greater in the intercropped plots than the single-cropping plots. The increase in the number of bees visiting the peppers was due to the stronger attraction of Paratrigona lineata, Apis mellifera and Tetragonisca angustula to basil in the intercropping plots. The pepper fruits produced in the intercropping were wider, longer, and heavier and developed more seeds than the fruits produced by single-cropping. The same differences were observed between the fruits grown in greenhouse with and without beehives of P. lineata. We demonstrate that agricultural systems designed to attract and retain pollinators are more productive than growing pure stands. Our results also highlight the role of provisioning floral resources to enhance bee conservation and management in anthropogenic ecosystems.