Polly brings camera-guided pollination to commercial tomato greenhouses

Biobest introduced Arugga’s Polly pollination robot on 27 October as a supplement to bumblebee pollination. Cameras identify suitable tomato flowers, then controlled air pulses stimulate pollen release.[1]

Tomatoes already contain male and female reproductive parts within their flowers. UConn Extension explains that wind or bees can assist pollination outdoors, while greenhouse growers may use manual methods or devices that shake the flower. Self-pollination therefore leaves a practical job to be done: moving pollen at the right time.[4]

A repeated route through a changing crop

Biobest says the latest Polly can cover up to one hectare, visiting each row every other day. The grower positions it in the first row; autonomous row switching takes it through the rest, returning it to base when finished. It runs on existing pipe rails, with up to ten hours of battery life and eight to ten hours of daily charging.[2]

What the published trials compare

The supplier’s trial summaries give concrete examples of Polly working with bumblebees, compared with bumblebees alone. Two cases show the variety of growing conditions behind the reported gains.[3]

The Ontario summary reports a virus outbreak affecting both trial areas. The Belgian case describes heat suppressing bee activity. These differences matter when interpreting the figures: each gain belongs to a particular crop, period and comparison, rather than representing a fixed improvement per robot.[3]

Pollination also sits inside a larger growing environment. UConn’s climate-adaptation guidance describes how sustained high temperatures can reduce tomato pollen production and viability. More regular visits can address gaps in pollination activity, while temperature management still determines the conditions in which flowers and pollen develop.[1][5]

Adding dependable coverage

Biobest offers a 12-month lease including maintenance, support and replacement parts, or outright purchase with a five-year warranty. It directs interested growers to an advisor to discuss deployment.[1]

The product documentation also describes an app that records average flower numbers per row, rows pollinated each day and the height of the highest truss. Those observations make the pollination round a record of coverage as well as an action on the crop. They give the growing team a way to connect the work carried out with the plants being monitored.[2]

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