Banker Plant Bonuses? The Benefits and Risks of Including Brassicas in Field Margins to Promote Conservation Biocontrol of Specialist Pests in Oilseed Rape.

ABSTRACT: European agri-environment schemes include the use of flower-rich field margins to promote on-farm biodiversity, but species mixtures rarely include Brassicaceae. As pests of oilseed rape (OSR; Brassica napus) and their parasitoids are mostly brassica specialists, including brassica 'banker plants' in the mixtures would help support these important biocontrol agents and improve pest control throughout the crop rotation. We assessed the potential of six brassicaceous plants (replicated plots grown in the field) to enhance populations of parasitoids of OSR pests whilst minimising proliferation of their pest hosts. Fodder radish (Raphanus sativus) facilitated high production of parasitoids of the pollen beetle pest (Brassicogethes aeneus) but may proliferate Ceutorhynch

SUBMITTER: Skellern MP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10145157 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature