Bechar, A., Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Shmulevich, I., Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Eisikowitch, D., Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Vaknin, Y., Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Ronen, B., Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel
Gan-Mor, S., Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel, Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Research Organization, PO Box 6, Bet Dagan 50250, Israel

Artificial pollination can influence economic profit in modem agriculture and competitive markets for quality fruits, vegetables and hybrid seeds, especially where climatic and ecological conditions are unfavorable. Technologies for electrostatic deposition of small particles were modified for flower pollination. The electric field in a system comprised of a charged cloud approaching a grounded flower was investigated with a 3-D finite element model. A simulation based on a finite element model was created and the pollen grain trajectories, which initiated from the cloud and ended on the flower, were calculated. An experimental device for electrostatic pollination was developed and tested in the laboratory and then under field conditions. Both model and laboratory results showed increased pollen density on the stigma, as compared to the flower envelope. Field experiments on dates (Phoenix dactylifera L.) showed that electrostatic pollination doubled the yield. The work demonstrated the advantages of electrostatic pollination and the possibilities for developing this technology.Artificial pollination can influence economic profit in modern agriculture and competitive markets for quality fruits, vegetables and hybrid seeds, especially where climatic and ecological conditions are unfavorable. Technologies for electrostatic deposition of small particles were modified for flower pollination. The electric field in a system comprised of a charged cloud approaching a grounded flower was investigated with a 3-D finite element model. A simulation based on a finite element model was created and the pollen grain trajectories, which initiated from the cloud and ended on the flower, were calculated. An experimental device for electrostatic pollination was developed and tested in the laboratory and then under field conditions. Both model and laboratory results showed increased pollen density on the stigma, as compared to the flower envelope. Field experiments on dates (Phoenix dactylifera L.) showed that electrostatic pollination double the yield. The work demonstrated the advantages of electrostatic pollination and the possibilities for developing this technology.