VEGETATED STRIPS: A TOOL AIMED AT PRODUCING AGRI-ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES

Within the Demo-Farm Plus project, funded by Regione Lombardia, D.G. Agriculture, Food and Green Systems, Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, Operation 1.2.01 - "Demonstration projects and information actions", at a demo-farm within the Natura 2000 Special Area of Conservation (SAC) Risaie della Lomellina, in the Lombardy region, Syngenta’s “Operation Pollinator® - Multifunctional Landscapes” (OP) international biodiversity program was implemented. OP consists in seed mixes of plants of high ecological relevance, useful for producing agro-environmental services. It represents an agrosystem management methodology aimed at providing numerous benefits to natural biodiversity and agricultural landscapes, such as countering pollinator decline and increasing biodiversity, developing ecological corridors, and containing pests and IAS spread. The OP project is also useful in protecting soil from erosion and mitigating drift and runoff due to the use of plant protection products (PPPs). “Rustico Dicotiledoni” and “Apis mellifera” variants of the OP mixes were sown at the demo-farm, at the edge of a maize field and near an irrigation ditch. The two vegetated strips sown with OP were monitored through floristic analysis and entomological (exploratory) surveys to assess vegetation evolution and analyze the presence of pollinators. Obtained results showed that both OP mixes promote the floristic biodiversity and the pollination ecosystem service through the presence of species such as Lamiaceae and Leguminosae. In fact, these plants, as nurse species, promote the presence of various insects, such as Lepidoptera, Odonata, Syrphidae and Coccinellidae. In such a context, the naturalist plays an important role to monitor both flora and fauna in the rural ecosystem, providing support to farmers and agronomists.