Combining organic fertilisation and perennial crops in the rotation enhances arthropod communities

Heinen, Janina; Smith, Monique E.; Taylor, Astrid; Bommarco, Riccardo

doi:10.1016/j.agee.2023.108461

Cited by 8 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…Like our study, Heinen et al. (2023) recently found that combinations of organic fertilizer with plant diversity in crop rotations increased natural enemies (carabids and staphylinids), but their effects were ostensibly driven by increases in soil organic matter, soil habitat quality and prey availability in the soil profile (Rowen et al., 2019). Our results clarify the importance of applying a systems approach to pest management (Baker et al., 2020) by revealing how bottom‐up effects on natural enemy attraction are modulated by flower diversity aboveground.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 66%

“…One previous study byEgerer et al (2018) considered the indirect effects of soil water-holding capacity (typically increased by high organic matter;Hudson, 1994) and flower density on herbivore suppression in urban gardens but did not consider interactions between them. Like our study,Heinen et al (2023) recently found that combinations of organic fertilizer with plant diversity in crop rotations increased natural enemies (carabids and staphylinids), but their effects were ostensibly driven by increases in soil organic matter, soil habitat quality and prey availability in the soil…”

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confidence: 75%

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Organic compost belowground and floral diversity aboveground interactively shape beneficial insects in urban gardens

Blubaugh,

Chesnut,

Hagan

2024

Journal of Applied Ecology

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Plant diversity aboveground can exert top‐down pressure on herbivores by attracting predatory insects, while organic soil amendments rich in beneficial microbes can limit herbivores from the bottom‐up by enhancing plant defensive chemistry. Aboveground and belowground forces always operate simultaneously to shape herbivore pressure, but understanding how they interact is a longstanding and persistent challenge. Here, we examine how organic composts mediate the effects of plant diversity across trophic levels, using zucchini plants (Cucurbita pepo) as a study system. Over two field seasons, we manipulated vermicompost treatments in 18 experiments in school gardens that varied in surrounding plant and floral resource diversity and measured responses of insect herbivores and their natural enemies. Vermicompost strengthened a positive relationship between flower richness and foliar‐feeding omnivores, suggesting that robust reservoirs of omnivores at flower‐rich sites mounted stronger responses to compost‐treated host plants. Predators increased with flower richness, but were not affected by vermicompost. Net outcomes of vermicompost and plant diversity were neutral for herbivores. Synthesis and applications. Altogether, our results reveal that bottom‐up factors protecting plants are modified by their environmental context, and may more effectively attract natural enemies in landscapes with diverse floral resources. Therefore, we recommend augmentation of biodiversity aboveground (i.e. floral resources) together with biodiversity belowground (organic soil amendments) to strengthen crop protection.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 66%

supporting

confidence: 75%

Organic compost belowground and floral diversity aboveground interactively shape beneficial insects in urban gardens

Blubaugh,

Chesnut,

Hagan

2024

Journal of Applied Ecology

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“…With complementary soil analysis (paper I) I show that the nitrogen, carbon and SOM contents of soils increase under diversified management, but this was only found for the combination of organic fertiliser and perennial ley (Figure 6, paper I). My results show that combining management practices can have greater benefits than single practices, where effects might be more dependent on initial conditions in the field or in the case of paper I, the different types of organic fertilisers used Heinen et al, 2023).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 90%

Multi-level trophic interactions in diversified cropping systems : Functioning and dynamics among above- and belowground arthropods

Heinen

2023

Acta Universitatis Agriculturae Sueciae

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Cropping practices alter the occurrence and abundance of species, and their interactions, in agricultural fields. Such alterations can impede the delivery of ecosystem functions by disrupting processes that would otherwise nourish and protect the crops. I examine how single and combined diversification practices of lowering tillage intensity or including perennial leys in crop rotations with or without amendment of organic fertiliser affect predatory ground beetles, herbivores, and soil fauna within and across crop growing seasons. I examined the effects of changes in coupled above- and belowground communities on predator-prey interactions, focusing on consequences for biological pest regulation. Molecular gut content analysis of what predators had eaten demonstrated that species rich predator communities strengthen pest regulation through predators’ trophic redundancy. Increased tillage intensity decreased the abundance of soil mesofauna, resulting in resource discontinuity for predators relying on soil fauna as alternative prey early in the crop growing season. I discovered that communities of above- and belowground arthropods are inextricably linked in time, and that arthropods benefit from habitat continuity and increased structural complexity of arable habitats. However, the recovery and recolonisation after disturbance was only marginally linked to predator overwintering within arable fields. Although results vary across diversification practices and temporal scales examined in this thesis, I identified habitat and resource continuity across the growing season as a key property of diversified management that bolsters predatory and soil arthropods. Variable effects found across taxa emphasise the need to focus on species ecology, and to put effort into identifying ecological linkages across species. By this approach, we can understand the impact of management on ecosystem functions derived from these communities.

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“…Pest and pathogen pressure on staple grain crops increases with warming in temperate regions, based on observations and model analyses (Chaloner et al., 2021; Deutsch et al., 2018; Singh et al., 2023). Higher CRD might counteract this increase in pest pressure by enhancing the diversity and abundance of predators to crop pests in the field and in the cropped landscape (Aguilera et al., 2020; Heinen et al., 2023; Redlich et al., 2018; Rusch et al., 2013), reducing infestations (Wang et al., 2022). Crop diversity could also promote pathogen‐suppressing microorganisms and reduce the presence of suitable hosts for pathogens (Peralta et al., 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The whiskers indicate the 95% confidence intervals. pests in the field and in the cropped landscape (Aguilera et al, 2020;Heinen et al, 2023;Redlich et al, 2018;Rusch et al, 2013), reducing infestations (Wang et al, 2022). Crop diversity could also promote pathogen-suppressing microorganisms and reduce the presence of suitable hosts for pathogens (Peralta et al, 2018).…”

Section: Increased Crd More Than Compensated Yield Losses In Low Dive...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Crop rotational diversity can mitigate climate‐induced grain yield losses

Costa,

Bommarco,

Smith

et al. 2024

Global Change Biology

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Diversified crop rotations have been suggested to reduce grain yield losses from the adverse climatic conditions increasingly common under climate change. Nevertheless, the potential for climate change adaptation of different crop rotational diversity (CRD) remains undetermined. We quantified how climatic conditions affect small grain and maize yields under different CRDs in 32 long‐term (10–63 years) field experiments across Europe and North America. Species‐diverse and functionally rich rotations more than compensated yield losses from anomalous warm conditions, long and warm dry spells, as well as from anomalous wet (for small grains) or dry (for maize) conditions. Adding a single functional group or crop species to monocultures counteracted yield losses from substantial changes in climatic conditions. The benefits of a further increase in CRD are comparable with those of improved climatic conditions. For instance, the maize yield benefits of adding three crop species to monocultures under detrimental climatic conditions exceeded the average yield of monocultures by up to 553 kg/ha under non‐detrimental climatic conditions. Increased crop functional richness improved yields under high temperature, irrespective of precipitation. Conversely, yield benefits peaked at between two and four crop species in the rotation, depending on climatic conditions and crop, and declined at higher species diversity. Thus, crop species diversity could be adjusted to maximize yield benefits. Diversifying rotations with functionally distinct crops is an adaptation of cropping systems to global warming and changes in precipitation.

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Combining organic fertilisation and perennial crops in the rotation enhances arthropod communities

Cited by 8 publications

References 60 publications

Organic compost belowground and floral diversity aboveground interactively shape beneficial insects in urban gardens

Organic compost belowground and floral diversity aboveground interactively shape beneficial insects in urban gardens

Multi-level trophic interactions in diversified cropping systems : Functioning and dynamics among above- and belowground arthropods

Crop rotational diversity can mitigate climate‐induced grain yield losses

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