Managing crop margins to enhance the presence of pollinators and natural enemies. The Spanish approach

The loss of natural habitats with the resulting decrease in plant diversity has been recognized as one of the key factors of the substantial decline in the populations of pollinators all over the world. Within the European initiative OPERATION POLLINATOR (www.operationpollinator.com), the managing of crop margins by implementing mixtures of flowering plants which offer food and shelter for both pollinators and natural enemies (NE) has been identified as a potential strategy to mitigate their decline in farming landscapes. OBJECTIVES in the central Spain study (Madrid) Identify a suitable floral mixture and its relative attractiveness of the flowering plant to pollinators (3-year study in a rainfed barley crop) Effects of the floral mixture in the melon crop (2-year study): • Number and diversity of pollinators visiting the melon flowers • Quality/productivity (seed & total weight, density, defects, °BRIX, pH, juiciness, etc.) • Nesting of solitary bees in the vicinity of the crop.