ATIVIDADE DE INSETOS EM FLORES DE OCIMUM GRATISSIMUM L. E SUAS INTERAÇÕES COM FATORES AMBIENTAIS

Abstract

The alfavacão (Ocimum gratissimum L.) is a perennial forb used in the popular medicine and wide found in domestic yards and gardens. In the period of May the June of 2005, investigated aspects of floral biology (anthesis determination, osmophores presence, stigma receptiveness and pollen viability) and the visiting insects of the O. gratissimum in the Horto de Medicinal Plantas of the Universidade Federal da Grande Dourados, in Dourados-MS. It analyzed, also, the reproductive mechanisms and ambient factors in the visits of the insects. It was verified that the flowers of the alfavacão present climax of budding in the period that coincides with the period of higher temperatures, with average percentages of the viable grains of pollen in the daily pay-anthesis, anthesis and after anthesis phases, varied of 94% 98%. The species presented indications of being preferential autogamous, a time that had greater efficiency in the natural auto-pollinization. With relation to the visiting insects visits of eleven different species with predominance of the species of the Apidae family had been observed.