Editing Pollenizer (section)

{{short description|Plant that provides pollen}}
{{distinguish|Pollinator}}
A '''pollenizer''' (or '''polleniser'''), sometimes '''pollinizer''' (or '''polliniser''', <small> see [[-ise vs -ize|spelling differences]]</small>), is a [[plant]] that provides [[pollen]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Alladin |first=Erin |date=2022-03-15 |title=Pollenizers: No, they’re not pollinators; yes, you probably need them |url=https://earthundaunted.com/pollenizers-no-theyre-not-pollinators-yes-you-probably-need-them/ |access-date=2024-01-10 |website=Earth Undaunted |language=en-US}}</ref>

The word ''[[pollinator]]'' is often used when ''pollenizer'' is more precise. A pollinator is the [[Biotic component|biotic]] agent that moves the pollen, such as [[bee]]s, [[moth]]s, [[bat]]s, and [[bird]]s. Bees are thus often referred to as '[[pollinating]] insects'.

The verb form ''to '''pollenize''''' is to be the [[Pollen source|source of pollen]], or to be the sire of the next plant generation.

While some plants are capable of self-pollenization, ''pollenizer'' is more often used in [[pollination management]] for a plant that provides abundant, compatible, and viable pollen at the same [[flower]]ing time as the pollinated plant. For example, most [[crabapple]] varieties are good pollenizers for any [[apple (fruit)|apple]] tree that blooms at the same time, and are often used in apple orchards for the purpose. Some apple [[cultivar]]s produce very little pollen or pollen that is sterile or incompatible with other apple varieties. These are poor pollenizers.

A pollenizer can also be the male plant in [[Plant sexuality|dioecious]] species (where entire plants are of a single sex), such as with [[kiwifruit]] or [[holly]].

[[Nursery (horticulture)|Nursery]] catalogs often specify that a [[cultivar]] should be planted as a "pollinator" for another cultivar, when they actually should be referring to it as a ''pollenizer''. Strictly, a plant can only be a pollinator when it is [[self-fertile]] and it physically pollinates itself without the aid of an external pollinator.