Using large mango farms as a case study, a group of researchers representing Britain, South Africa, and the Netherlands, recently reported the results of a study in the Journal of Applied Ecology which “show that the presence of small patches of native flowers within
Using large mango farms as a case study, a group of researchers representing Britain, South Africa, and the Netherlands, recently reported the results of a study in the Journal of Applied Ecology which “show that the presence of small patches of native flowers within large farms can increase pollinator-dependent crop production if combined with preservation of remaining fragments of natural habitat and judicious use of pesticides. Native flower compensation areas represent a profitable management measure for farmers, increasing cost-effectiveness of cropland while indirectly contributing to preservation of natural habitat.”
Understandably, farmers may be reluctant to return land currently under production to native habitat due to concerns about decreased production profits. This research shows an example where the opposite was quantified. Although the total number of pollinators was not affected by distance from native habitat, fruit set was increased in areas closer to stands of native perennial plants. Flying insects are able to cross pollinate the mango flowers whereas crawling insects 