The magazine of the INTERREG North Sea Region Project BEESPOKE

BEESPOKE is a project funded by the INTERREG North Sea region Programme.

Insect pollination is worth €15 Billion in the EU, but the number of wild pollinators is decreasing due to loss of flower-rich habitats. As a response the EU adopted a pollinator initiative in 2018. The NSR is one of the most productive agricultural areas, but pollinators are in decline across the region. The overall objective is to increase the number of pollinators and crop pollination on local and landscape scale by providing new expertise, tools and financial knowledge to land managers and policy makers, in order to create more sustainable and resilient agro-ecosystems.

BEESPOKE brings a wide range of partners together – from policy makers, research institutes, advisory and end users from six different NSR-countries – to develop new products and approaches to increase the diversity of insect pollinators and crop yields by 10%. We will develop bespoke seed mixes and habitat management guidelines to support the suite of pollinators required for 14 crop types on 72 demonstration sites.

Sites for each crop will showcase best management practices, and training materials will be developed for biodiversity monitoring and for measuring pollination. The same type of agro-ecosystems occur across the NSR and transnational cooperation will give economies of scale for development of these novel tools.

This approach will enable land managers to adopt pollinator management as a routine practice, fostering a bottom-up, land manager approach, ensuring a continuing improvement of crop pollination by insects.

Benefitting Ecosystems through Evaluation of food Supplies for Pollination to Open up Knowledge for End users

photo: Jan-Willem van Kruyssen

Foreword

Introduction to the BEESPOKE project

by John Holland, BEESPOKE project coordinator Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, UK

Across the world insects are the most important pollinators of flowering plants including many crops, such as apples and strawberries, but also wild plants. They therefore play a crucial role within natural and agricultural ecosystems ensuring plants can produce the seeds and fruit upon which so many species depend, including ourselves, and ensuring their survival from year to year. For some crops this role is performed by managed honeybees, yet there are many more types of wild pollinating insects which are even more important, including bumblebees, solitary bees and hoverflies. Unfortunately, there is now alarming evidence that numbers of wild pollinators are in decline and the range of many species is contracting, putting crops, wild plants and ecosystems at risk.

The North Sea Region (NSR) is no exception and was identified as having a very low pollination potential leading to a pollination ‘gap’ or deficit that has implications for farm incomes and food security. In the EU, insect pollination is valued at 15 billion EUR and consequently there are considerable economic gains to be made from ensuring wild pollinators are preserved and enhanced to ensure optimum pollination.

(7.7%) and 244 species are stable (12.6%), however, for 1535 species in the EU (79%) there is no long-term data. More widespread and detailed monitoring is needed to keep track of their trends. With fewer species in northern than southern Europe, there is less robustness in the pollinator community to such losses, further emphasising the importance of protecting the remaining species and populations.  There are many potential causes for the declines in pollinators including climate change, pesticides, urbanisation and loss of flowerrich habitats, but no clear scientific evidence regarding the importance of each of these.

One of the most important landscape changes has been the loss of flower-rich grassland as farmers have switched from hay to silage for livestock. Putting small amounts of such habitat back in the landscape has proven to help boost numbers of pollinators.

In the UK, providing just 2.2% flower-rich habitats doubled the numbers of nests of four bumblebee species in agricultural areas. Indeed, provision of more flower-rich habitat has been seen as a way to help pollinators throughout European agri-environment schemes of recent decades. Uptake of such schemes has, however, been low with pollinator conservation seen as the motivation rather than enhancement of crop productivity.

In the NSR, many of the economically important crops rely on insects for pollination; some are highly dependent (apples, cherries, soft fruits, blackcurrants, pumpkins, courgettes, spinach) or are moderately dependent (pears, plums, runner beans). For these and other crops we don’t always know which are the best pollinators and how much they contribute to improving yield or quality.

In the NSR wild pollinators are particularly important being more coldtolerant and efficient pollinators than honeybees, but alarmingly there is evidence that they are declining. Indeed, almost 1 in 10 species of bees are considered threatened and a further 5% near threatened. In terms of their long-term population trends, 150 species are declining

Despite its importance, the value of pollination is rarely quantified or considered, although in Belgium the annual total value of insect pollination was estimated at 252 million Euros in 2010.  The EU Biodiversity strategy (Action 5) required EU Member States to map and assess the state of ecosystems and their services in their national territory by 2014, assess the economic value of such services, and promote the integration of these values into accounting and reporting systems at EU and national level by 2020. There is still much to do in terms of quantifying the value of pollination and also the cost of increasing this ecosystem service.

photo: John Holland

There is evidence that pollination is below the optimum due to insufficient numbers of honeybees and wild pollinators. In the UK <25% of the demand for pollination is provided by honeybees, and in Germany and Denmark is also low at 25-50%. In addition, crops vary in the types of pollinators which are most efficient, for some crops it is bumblebees whilst for others it may be solitary bees. There are also differences in which plant species individual species and groups of pollinators prefer to forage upon, depending on their anatomy. For example, long-tongued bumblebees can reach the nectar of flowers with long corollas whilst solitary bees, having short tongues, need more simple, open structured flowers.  Across all countries, farmers are typically unaware of their pollination levels or how to encourage the right types of pollinators for their crops.

Having techniques to measure pollination levels and supply appropriate floral resources, products and services will generate meaningful economic gains across the region. This will encourage and support more sustainable agroecosystems and embed consideration of pollinators into farm management practices.

Other habitats in the landscape (low-input grassland, hedgerows and woodland) also contain flowering plants that are beneficial to pollinators and insect diversity and offer opportunities through appropriate management to increase floral resources at landscape scales.

Progress in providing pollinator resources via agri-environment schemes varies between NSR countries. Also, the aim of these schemes is to typically boost overall numbers of pollinators and insects using standardised wildflower seed mixes. These may not contain the types of plant species needed to support the required pollinators of a particular crop. Consequently, more targeted seed mixes may be needed. Standardised monitoring of pollinators and insect diversity is also in its infancy and is only national. Knowledge of long-term trends in abundance and distribution are a valuable tool for detecting where remedial measures are needed and are a powerful motivator and reward instrument.

photo: NIAB

photo: Vlaamse Landmaatschappij

photo: Hogeschool Van Hall Larenstein

Aims of the Project

Aims of the BEESPOKE project

by John Holland, BEESPOKE project coordinator Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, UK

The overall aim of BEESPOKE is to increase levels of pollinators and crop pollination at local and landscape scales by providing land managers and policy makers with the expertise, tools and financial knowledge to instigate bottom-up change creating more sustainable and resilient NSR ecosystems.

Crop pollination is rarely measured routinely so one of the first objectives has been to develop farmer friendly methods for measuring their own pollination and levels of pollinators. If pollination need improving, then it is important that the right types of pollinators are enhanced.  To achieve this, we have been developing and testing bespoke seed mixes that address the needs of the specific crop. These were established on farms so that their impact on pollination and pollinators could be measured and as a focus point for knowledge exchange activities. This included training in the new methods for assessing levels of pollinators and pollination, and in habitat management. Guides and videos have been developed to support these activities.

Pollinators can be mobile moving across the landscapes between farms and therefore management at landscape scales is also needed. A landscape modelling approach was used to produce maps that predict levels of pollinators across existing NSR landscapes based upon the occurrence of different types of habitats and the likely levels of pollinators that they support. Correlations between the predicted levels of pollinators, actual levels as measured in crops and subsequent levels of pollination have been sought and incorporated into the model. Outputs from the first objective of the model was to identify the levels by which habitats can be improved for pollinators and then use the model to redesign farms/landscapes to increase levels of pollinators to match the demand for pollination. Outputs from the model will identify the amount of new habitat or extent of improvements to existing habitats needed to enhance pollination and pollinators.

Each member state has existing Agri-environment schemes funded through the CAP or nationally, however, these vary hugely, as does the uptake. Using a series of expert meetings, review, economic analyses, surveys and outputs from the demonstration studies we aim to provide recommendations on how to revise member states AEMs to improve opportunities and increase uptake of pollinator enhancing habitats To ensure continuous improvement and adapt activities within the project to make sure that we reach our objectives we have applied a formative approach to evaluation. The ultimate goal being to be able to identify what key measures instigated change among our target group as well as what bottle necks or hurdles still exist and/or hardest to overcome.

As an extension to the project we are also investigating whether environmentally friendly farming systems can benefit pollinators and whether further practices could be of value such as new flower-rich grassland seed mixes, novel crops and reductions in herbicide inputs to conserve arable plants. We also aimed to create a longer legacy from the project via a new online tool for selecting appropriate wildflower mixes for local conditions, developing long-term management plans for flower mixes and a new initiative to boost local wildflower seed production and create new potential income stream for farmers. Two new partners were also brought on board to provide additional demonstration platforms in Sweden and Norway.

To ensure findings and recommendations reach as wide an audience as possible there is a comprehensive communications package that uses traditional and modern media to achieve this besides on-farm knowledge exchange activities.

The aims of this magazine are to inspire more stakeholders to consider management of pollinators as a key farm activity. Such actions may not only benefit farm incomes for crops requiring pollination but also help conserve pollinators and other insects which so desperately need help. We will provide updates on our work so far and give voice to those that have already adopted such practices to learn from their experiences.

Illustrated by Levina Steinkönig

photo: Jayna Connelly

The BEESPOKE partners

The BEESPOKE project Partners

The BEESPOKE project brings together 16 partners from 7 North Sea Region countries. Experts from research organisations, institutes and universities are working together on different topics within the project.

The main work fields of the project

- Project management

- Communications

- Design of biodiverse landscapes

- Biodiversity monitoring, protocols & training

- Improving policy, delivery & uptake

- Project monitoring & evaluation

Learn more about our partners and their role in the project in their introduction videos

The project partners

photo: Anna Vollmer

Insights & advice

The Importance of Native Seeds

Cruydt-Hoeck reinforces the use of native seeds and proper management of wildflower areas

Jojanneke Bijkerk & Cynthya Russchen, Cruydt-Hoeck

Insects have a hard time these recent decades, through loss of habitat, use of pesticides and climate change. Fortunately, there’s an increasing awareness for the role insects play in ecosystems as well as a growing understanding of the importance of biodiversity for a healthy production and living environment. That’s why native seed mixtures are growing in popularity, also by agriculturists. There are a lot of mixtures on the market, but not every seed mix has the desired effect to help restore biodiversity.

There is a large offer of seed mixtures to be found online. A large part of these mixtures consists of non-native seeds: non-native to Europe, often also non-native to your own region or so called “native seeds” but in fact originated from Eastern Europe or much farther away. These non-native mixtures are often cheaper, but colourful. Less critical insects such as some common species of bumblebees and butterflies find nectar and pollen in these plants.

But a very large group of more critical insects are specifically dependent on many different species of native plants of local origin. So, to help restore biodiversity we need a multi-species native plant environment.

Local native plants and insects depend on each other

Native plants and native insects are sharing a history of many thousands of years. In this time, they co-evolved and are often interdependent on each other. Many insects are dependent on one specific plant or a group of plants for survival. For example, the caterpillars of the small copper live only on sheep’s sorrel and common sorrel. These plants are essential for their survival. Some wild bees are real specialists and feed their young pollen from one specific plant or a selected group of plants. For this reason it is important that native plants are growing and blooming in their territory. Also, think of the many hundreds of species of moths that need all these many species of native plants as hosts. Birds and other predators are dependent on the abundance of insects like moths and their caterpillars to feed their offspring. In this respect it is also of value that the native seeds are from your own region and not from far away and from different climate zones.

The role of insects in agriculture

Pollinators are essential for our own communities. One of the most important role of insects in nature is the pollination of plants. A lot of the crops we eat are pollinated by insects like wild bees. So, insects do agriculturists a great favour. With a native flower meadow or strip (preferably wide), these useful insects can be attracted and supported, so that they can pollinate the crops. Remember, insects require bed and breakfast, so besides lots of plants they need a place to live as well. But this is not the only help insects provide to agriculture. Insects that are attracted by the native flowers are also useful as a natural pest control, therefore native flowers can also be financially interesting. Farmers from the Waadrâne area (the Netherlands), who participated in the BEESPOKE project, experienced much less infestation of aphids when a flower strip was present.

photo: Gemert, Cruydt-Hoek

The right choice of flowers

There are several native seeds mixtures on the market. Please ask for advice on the best mix for your location from your local native seed producer. If you wish a permanent flower meadow/strip, please choose

a seed mix with perennial species. The advantage of a permanent meadow is that you don’t have to sow every year and that there is a continuous source of nectar and pollen and shelter that benefit pollinators.

Please pay attention to the soil type and quality as this has a big impact on the quality and durability of a meadow or flower strip. Several native plant species are specialized on relatively nutrient-poor soil, while other species can grow on a disturbed ground (annuals and bi-annuals mostly). Apart from soil type and quality other factors may also have great influence on the establishment, development and endurance of a flower mix. The amount of sunlight, the acidity and the moist content are of great influence. Most flowers that are particular for meadows require lots of sunlight. The acidity may be particular in a specific region. So, make sure the flowers are from this region as well. Some plants may grow very well on very dry soils, like viper’s bugloss, while others prefer a moist or wet soil, usually tall species like meadowsweet and hemp agrimony. When soils are very wet, they are usually less useful for arable crops. So most arable soils are sort of dry and better suitable for knapweed, meadow cranesbill, oxeye daisy and common bird’s-foot-trefoil. Always try to select plant species for your mix that suit your area.

Proper management is crucial for long-term success

Without mowing the meadow will change into forest. It is dependent on your soil how much mowing you have to do. If you have an nutrientrich soil than you have to mow two or three times in a year. If you have an nutrient-poor soil than one mowing in September or October is enough. A native seeds nursery in your country can advise you about mowing policy.

Biodiversity restoration is necessary and agriculture plays a huge role in it. But if you invest in biodiversity you will contribute to our society and it also will benefit your farming business.

photo: Gemert, Cruydt-Hoek

Lessons learned from the Establishment of Wildflower Strips

5 Takeaways from the Flemish Land Agency

Wim Vandenrijt & Dries van Hecke, VLM - Vlaamse Landmaatschappij (Flemish Land Agency)

The Flemish Land Agency (VLM) is the government agency that supports open spaces in Flanders, Belgium. For BEESPOKE we established four pilot areas and work together with 40 farmers, including some fruit growers. The farmers establish wildflower strips that VLM and other BEESPOKE partners monitor closely. Both the pollinator population and the species-dependent plant preferences of bees were monitored.

In the flower fields VLM uses as many native species as possible. For our region that means we use plants like wild carrot, cornflower, brown knapweed or tansy. Cultivars or introduced species either don’t produce nectar or the nectar is not reachable for the indigenous wild bees. We do add more typical agricultural crops like alfalfa, buckwheat, black mustard or dill since these species support wild bees. These species also help to bring down the costs of the wildflower seed mixes.

Here are 5 takeaways that we

1. Perennial mixes provide food resources throughout the season

We noticed that perennial wildflower strips have a better effect on the bee population. They have a longer blooming period during the year from early spring to autumn providing food resources throughout the season. More individuals and species of wild bees were counted on these perennial fields. Annual flower strips bloom more abundantly, but for a shorter period of time.

2. Adding annual species to provide sufficient blooming

Although perennial flower strips beneficial, it is useful to add some plants in the seed mix (e.g. cornflower). Perennial flower strips tend to blooms at first, the annual flowers bloom early after the establishment bridge the first period when did not start to bloom yet

Annual flower strip: common poppy, cornflower, black mustard, buckweath, dill, rapeseed, borage, hairy vetch, etc.

Perennial flower strip in the third year: red clover, common yarrow, wild carrot, smooth hawksbeard, cat’s ear, ox-eye daisy, etc. - biennials in this mixture (left and middle) like yellow mignonette and blueweed (typical of disturbed soils) were crowded out from year 3 onwards.

have learned so far

species

sufficient

strips are more some annual cornflower). show fewer flowers start to establishment and perennials

3. Ensure sufficient nesting possibilities in surroundings

Not only the selection of the seeds is important, the location of the flower strip is also crucial. There should be nesting places within 200 meters (the flying range of most wild bees). Many wild bees in agricultural areas are nesting in the soil; but some also nest in cavities of trees or plants. Therefore, a nesting place can be a hedge, tree or a general rough terrain. Solitary bees are heat-loving, so a sunny place normally is the better option as the flower fields also perform better there. However, during hot, dry summers we did find that fields that were shaded in the afternoon withstood heat and drought best.

4. Autumn sowing for best results

Early autumn (September/October) is the best time to sow. The weed pressure is much lower around this time and the blooming starts earlier next year. We noticed the false seed bed technique sometimes can be effective in suppressing the weed.

5. Manage for biodiversity in general

Flower strips do not solve everything. In order to support the population of pollinators, an overall biodiverse landscape should be created. For example, shrubs like blackthorn are an important provider of food for wild bees in early spring. A land that is not too intensively managed generally makes a great place for pollinators.

Some species tend to overgrow, like daisy and wild carrot in the above cases. Also tansy has that tendency. We advise to be careful with the share of these seeds in the seed mix.

Despite the fact that no grasses were added in the perennial edges, we do observe strong spontaneous grassing after a few years

photos: Vlaamse Landmaatschappij

Bee-friendly agriculture

Advice from Inagro on a selection of farming practices

Written by Thomas van Loo (Inagro), translated by Anna Vollmer

If you want to lend a helping hand to the pollinators of your crops, there are a couple of effective measures worth considering. Wildflower strips are often the first thing that comes to mind, but there are more options in addition to establishing (preferably perennial) wildflower strips.

You could think of

installing mixed hedges and properly maintain them applying pesticides very cautiously and only if really necessary establishing flower-rich meadows

mowing part of your alfalfa plot according to a phased mowing schedule

cultivating flowering crops.

lupine

field beans

chickpeas

zucchini

camelina

pumpkin

sunflower

hemp

flax peas

rapeseed

soft and hard fruits.

However, most crops only flower for a very limited time. For this reason, providing additional flowering plants might be necessary to the use of as long as possible: pollinators like bumblebees need food sources from early in the season up until late in the year.

It is important to stretch the flowering period of successive flowering plants as long as possible. Think of the life of a bumblebee colony: the queens awake from hibernation in February or March. They then have to start a colony by themselves. At that time, it is important that they find sufficient amount of food for themselves as well as their larvae. Once the colony established, the bees need nectar and pollen until October. This is when the last new queens leave the colony in search of a suitable place to spend the winter, after which the whole cycle starts again.

Some flowering crops that are interesting for pollinators are:

Bee-friendly agriculture ultimately revolves around 3 principles.

1. Providing sufficient food sources throughout the year in the form of flowering plants (herbs, shrubs, trees and crops).

photo: Inagro

photo: Inagro

2. Shelter and nesting facilities (e.g. hedges, old (mouse) holes, sparse vegetation (bare ground present), rough herbaceous vegetation, hollow stems).

Several the well-known pollinators (honeybees and all species of bumblebees) live in colonies and therefore need relatively large cavities. For instance, bumblebees often nest in old mouse holes, cavities in trees or they weave their own nest in rougher herbaceous vegetation. These are all elements that can often be found in and along hedges. Less well-known pollinators, various species of solitary bees in particular dig tunnels in the ground themselves or use existing holes above the ground.

3. Protect pollinators as much as possible from contact with pesticides.

Plant protection products often have harmful side effects next to the purpose for which they are initially used. Some products kill bees when they come in direct contact with it. Other products do not kill the bees directly but might substantially impair them, for example in their ability to navigate properly. Besides that, bees are usually not exposed to the harmful effects of a single product but to multiple different products at the same time.

It is therefore crucial to consider the use of pesticides very reasonably and thoughtfully: try to avoid application schemes based on fixed dates and only intervene when the spread of pest species is really getting out of hand - give the natural enemies a chance. If effective intervention indeed is required: try to apply the pesticides only when no bees are active and do not treat crops that are flowering. Rinse your sprayer in a place where the rinse water can be collected and processed and therefore does not end up in the environment.

Inagro’s agricultural demonstration plot

Inagro manages a field where several agri-environmental measures are applied. These measures not only support general biodiversity but also bring advantages for the farmer. With the demonstration and management of these measures in the plot, Inagro gains more practical experiences and knowledge about the different measures and their management and can in turn transfer this knowledge back to the

sector. Visitors of the plot benefit from the demonstration in the field rather than just reading about it.

On the plot there are perennial wildflower strips, mixed loose hedges, a beetle bank, a flowery mixture that focuses on the needs of partridges as well as a kestrel box installed on a post. In addition, the plot also offers space to set up crop-related trials. For example, in 2022 there was a trial in which we wanted to find out whether it is possible to sow flowering field herbs in winter wheat without the seeds ending up in the harvested crop during threshing.

You can read the article in Dutch as well.

In this video Ruben Mistiaen from Inagro introduces a selection of bee- and biodiversity-supporting farming practices and to the Inagro demo plot.

Leave it messy

The value of additional habitats on farms

Helle Mathiasen, HortiAdvice, photos: Helle Mathiasen, HortiAdvice

What can farmers do on their farmland to enhance and support biodiversity? And how can they benefit from this increased biodiversity at farm level? Sometimes this is easier than expected. Not only new measures are supporting biodiversity are worth considering, but also what farmers are already doing and could continue doing. Initiatives to support biodiversity can be both: establishing new habitats but also to preserve and protect existing habitats.  Establishing new habitats by planting perennial seed mixes is one way of supporting pollinators by providing pollen and nectar (food resources). A wildflower strip can support pollinators on the long term if the seed mix contains a wide variety of species which differ in time of flowering providing food resources throughout the season.

But visits to apple orchards can sometimes reveal that farmers are already doing something for biodiversity without doing anything or by simply being a bit messy.

Apple orchards are perennial, less disturbed production systems with a higher degree of stability which offer the possibility of to provide a diverse environment to support and/or enhance biodiversity. Apple orchards often have quite a few marginal areas that are not cropped. These areas are important to preserve and restore as additional habitats to support biodiversity/pollinators - either by providing food resources or nesting habitats. The apple trees provide a lot of food during their bloom, but this supply only lasts for a short period. Pollinators need food resources from early spring, before the apple trees are flowering, until late summer. For this reason, additional habitats in the orchard, can support pollinators even better.

Our project partner Helle Mathiasen from HortiAdvice came across some examples of additional habitats providing food and nesting possibilities during a farmers’ meeting at an apple orchard in Denmark. Laust Spandet Jensen is the owner of the Vesterled frugtplantage (Vesterled fruit orchard) and grows apples, pears and plums on the small island Fejø in the southern part of Denmark.

Do you want to learn more about the orchard and the surrounding area? Have a look at the Visit Denmark video.

Nesting and forage possibilities

An example of a marginal spot between two sections of apples in the field with flowering trees and bushes and in front anything emerging is left to grow without being cut.

Early food resources

A closer look at the spot reveals trees of prunus which flower early and provide food for pollinators very early and before the apple trees do.

Nesting possibilities

An undisturbed spot with wood and bare soils which can be an important nesting habitat for ground nesting bees.

Nesting possibilities

Another potential nesting habitat with coarse sandy soil for ground nesting bees.

Nesting and forage possibilities

Another permanent and undisturbed habitat between two sections in the orchards. In front, stones which have been removed from the field and placed here over time and some flowering perennials. In the back, the hedgerow with differences trees and bushes. This habitat provides both food resources, shelter and nesting habitats for pollinators.

Nesting possibilities

During the meeting and field walk (June 2022), we looked for pollinators and observed this ground nesting bumble bee, white-tailed bumble bee, in the grass row between the rows of apple trees.

photos: Helle Mathiasen, HortiAdvice

Crop Production and the Pollinator Deficit Some Initial Survey Results

Professor Iain Fraser, University of Kent

There is much discussion and research examining and measuring the pollination deficit for a wide array of crops. However, it is unclear the extent to which farmers consider or even understand the potential for a pollinator deficit to exist. To examine this important issue, we undertook a survey in the UK to examine farmers attitudes about pollinator management for crop production as well as wider environmental objectives. In particular, we wanted to understand the degree to which farmers consider the current level and quality of pollinator activity and its impact on production.

Our reason for examining this issue is that there is little evidence that the pollinator deficit is a problem being reported by farmers. We also wanted to understand what land use activities are being implemented to support wild pollinators. Fundamentally, there has been little research examining farmer understanding of pollinators, how this informs on-farm monitoring and management and the adoption of land-use activities to support wild pollinators.

Our survey was undertaken online in two waves during 2021 and 2022. In total, we collected 228 responses. When we asked farmers about the relationship between pollination and several aspects of crop production, our results revealed some interesting insights about pollination deficits. For example, when asked if crop yield was lower than it could be because of insufficient pollination, less than 20% of respondents answered positively. We also found very low responses in terms of how insufficient levels of pollination negatively impact crop quality and financial returns.

However, when we examine the responses in more detail there is a difference in terms of responses for fruit farmers compared to arable farmers. Fruit farmers appear to understand the link between the importance of pollinators and crop quality and quantity, they also actively monitor for pollinators and support pollinators by adopting

various farm level management practices, although these results are statistically weak.

Thus, although our results indicate that many farmers do not think that they are suffering from a problem as a result of there being a pollinator deficit, there is a difference for the type of crop being grown. These findings raise an interesting question regarding the discussed pollinator deficit:

Either certain groups of farmers are generally unaware of the pollinator deficit and its impact on production or the significance of the pollinator deficit is of far less importance to certain farmer groups compared to other aspects of crop production?

Our respondents also provided extensive feedback on survey. With regard to crop yield and pollination, the responses provided are revealing. Several respondents assess yields (compared to historical levels or national averages) and suggest any deficit might be due to a pollinator deficit but several also note that measuring a pollinator deficit is very difficult in practice.

“Very difficult but think that the crop could always yield better and maybe it is down to not enough pollinators”

“I think it is very difficult to assess how I can say how much the yield is down due to pollinators”

“Very difficult to assess yield deficit”

Overall, our results indicate that identifying a pollinator deficit at the crop level is difficult and is maybe considered less important than other yield limiting factors that can affect output on an annual basis. This finding highlights the need to inform farmers that current levels of crop pollination may not be optimal and there are practical steps that they can take to remedy this limitation. In particular, the Beespoke project is generating extensive crop level resources (videos and information sheets) to enable farmers to identify pollinators and to better gauge the magnitude of pollinator deficits.

For any readers interested in undertaking the survey (UK, Belgium and Netherlands) please follow the links provided here ->

photos: George Hosford

photos: Anna Vollmer

InterviewsFrom Farmer to Farmer

How the Hosford Brothers Promote Pollinators

From farmer to farmer

Interview with George and Dougal Hosford from the Traveller’s Rest Farm, Dorset (England). Interviewed by Lucy Capstick, written by Anna Vollmer, revised by George and Dougal Hosford

into more regenerative farming practices and manage for pollinators generally. They focus on the maintenance of healthy soils, the reduction of chemical and fertiliser inputs where possible and the establishment of wildflower margins. They have not planted any BEESPOKE mixes but provided their farm as a study site for BEESPOKE research on field beans and hedgerows.

Pollinator friendly measures – their wildflower margins

Promoting pollinators and pollination is part of the brothers’ farm management. George and Dougal manage 74 hectares of their land as wildflower margins and plots and have various areas of downland across the farm, which are good habitat for wildflowers. At first, they were unsure of how to establish wildflower areas. But Dougal was very interested and learned on the job, using the farm’s Vaderstad drill to establish the wildflowers. It worked out very well and they had good experience with establishment.

Encroachment of grasses – mowing & cutting

George and Dougal Hosford support the conservation of pollinators and other wildlife and manage their farm accordingly. The brothers’ Traveller’s Rest Farm is located near Blandford forum in Dorset, England and covers 800 hectares altogether, including grassland for their livestock as well as over 600 ha. arable fields and some woodland. The family have been tenants of the farm since the 1960s and the brothers took over farm management in 1985. They also hope to pass it on to the next generation.

Dougal is a chairperson of the Farming & Wildlife Advisory Group SouthWest (FWAG SouthWest) and George leads the farmer cluster that they are a part of. Their farm is not organic, but they put a lot of effort

To avoid the grasses to becoming too dominant, the farmers mow the margins and remove the cuttings. They bale up the cuttings and make hay from it, which they feed to their cows. They prefer to make hay rather than silage since hay is cheaper and they can avoid using plastic. Dougal emphasises the importance of autumn mowing and the removal of the cuttings, to restrict the excess grasses and weeds, and to promote the growth of the flowers the following year. He points out that, “[...] it’s all about reducing fertility. […] if you reduce the fertility, all those things can sort themselves out”.

By removing the cuttings, soil fertility can be reduced. This suppresses competitive grass species that prefer nutrient rich soil and benefits the less competitive wildflower species. The farmers advise not leaving the cuttings, since this encourages even more grasses to grow by adding to the soil fertility and increasing the number of grass seeds. Leaving the cuttings on the ground can also have negative effects on invertebrates as the thatch creates uninhabitable cold and moist conditions.

© George Hosford

Costs of management – making hay & sourcing seeds

The farmers are in countryside stewardship (a UK agri-environment scheme) in which they receive subsidies for their wildflower margins. By feeding the cuttings as hay to their cows the brothers are saving money while also offering their cows good and diverse food. For this reason, the maintenance and management of the margins work out very well for them. However, they also recognise that the costs of the management might be more of a problem for other farmers since they don’t profit from, for example, the cuttings since “many arable farms don’t have any livestock, though perhaps they could be composted and spread back on the land as fertiliser?”, Dougal says. The brothers are proud to have harvested seeds from their own downland to sow in some newly planted margins. Dougal knows about the importance of their seeds: “It’s native. They are genetically adapted flowers, they’re going to provide long term habitats. Much better. You never know where bought seeds are coming from.“

Non-native seeds might be cheaper and more colourful and provide resources to common pollinator species. However, other critical species depend on a sufficient amount and diversity of local, native plants

Also, the brothers understand that the costs of seed mixes and thus the establishment of wildflower margins can be off-putting. For this reason, the farmers prefer to use their own native seed mixes, since these seeds have “[..] already been adapting and reproducing themselves locally over the last 12 years”, George says. They see the use of their own seed mixes as “[…] an interesting experiment to do”, Dougal adds. They got a sample of their seeds identified, so they know what species they are sowing.

photo: Lucy Capstick

Reducing inputs

The brothers are convinced that reducing chemical inputs and insecticides is necessary to ensure sustainable farming and insect conservation. George is:

“praying for the day when all insecticides on anything flowering are banned, but unfortunately there will still be farmers who are because they think they’ve got a pest problem. Which is heart-breaking. It really troubles me. I remember years ago when we did used to. […] I was never comfortable doing it and we tried hard to avoid them. But yes, since 2018, we’ve applied no insecticides, we just made that decision. It’s actually a very easy agronomic decision because you’re just not going there and whatever happens you take it on the chin […]. We’re aiming with the flower strips to try and balance up our natural level of background [predator] species.”

He adds that there are probably a lot more farmers “who wouldn’t take an awful lot of persuasion if we can find evidence that if you leave it alone, the insect problems do not get worse.”

Monitoring pollinators & pollination – evidence for the benefits

Monitoring the numbers and diversity of pollinators can provide valuable insight in the relationship between crop yield and pollination (potential pollination deficit). Thereby evidence can be provided to what extent the wildflower margins are “working” thus benefitting crop pollination. George and Dougal recognise the value of monitoring and are very interested to know which pollinators are visiting their margins and how much benefit they bring for their crops. However, they cannot identify insects themselves and find it difficult to pursue the monitoring. They have not yet found someone who is willing and able to do it. They say that many other farmers might think the same way and might also be interested in monitoring their pollinators but wouldn’t know where to start. If they can find someone skilled who would be interested in doing the monitoring, George would agree to that “[...] without a question.”

difficult for other farmers to be convinced. They started the establishment of their flower strips with just with the belief in doing “the right thing” and that “some kind of balance will return”, George says. They just wanted to try it out and see whether it would be compatible with their crop management - even two years before they received money from the stewardship.

Convincing other farmers – certain evidence & policies

The brothers want other farmers to be encouraged to try and establish wildflower margins at their farms as well. But George points out that “uncertainty discourages people from trying”. The uncertain future of policies and subsidies (in the UK) as well the perceived lack of evidence for benefits make farmers reluctant to introduce new management practices. Therefore, farmers tend to stick to their well-known, conventional methods and production management hesitating to “sacrifice” part of their land for wildflower margins.

Dougal suggests that farmers need stable policies and subsidy regulations as well as the evidence that the margins indeed benefit pollinators and crops: “evidence of benefits is really what we need for all these things […]. And also then get the government to pay us to do the things which can actually make a difference. You know there’s so much uncertainty still.”

Dougal is hopeful that bringing farmers together to exchange knowledge and ideas with each other is a good way to encourage them and to dissolve their uncertainties:

“Getting farmers together and talking about these things is the best way. We had a FWAG Farm walk on Monday, you go and look at things, you get people standing by and you all talk about it. That’s the best way to be convinced.”

Without the monitoring and evidence that the wildflower margins are positively affecting the crop, they believe that it would be

Since the interview the UK government have very recently announced the introduction of a payment per ha to farmers for not using insecticides on their land. The Hosfords are very pleased to hear this news and are looking forward to entering the scheme and being rewarded.

photo: Lucy Capstick

A look behind the scenes at the bee-friendly farm “The Land of Milk and Honey”

From farmer to farmer

Interview with Johan Bousseamaere from Nieuwkapelle, Belgium .

We follow a crop rotation of six years: three years of herb-rich grassland, followed by 3 years of arable farming. The herb-rich grassland lets the soil rest and enriches it with nitrogen. After these 3 years arable crops ensure that the accumulated nitrogen is used properly and the soil is supplied with carbon again. To enrich the soil with extra carbon, we always try to thresh the arable crops, and returning the straw to the soil. And in doing so we remove CO2 from the air and store it in the soil. This way of working benefits the life in the soil: a healthy soil is the starting point for healthy production.

To support bees in agricultural landscapes, people often think of flower borders, wood edges and reasoned use of phytochemicals. But there are also other ways to help out wild bees.

In Nieuwkapelle (Diksmuide, Belgium) Johan and Isabel manage an organic farm where they integrate sustainable and well-considered decisions in their management. Johan is also a beekeeper. Ruben Mistiaen from Inagro interviewed Johan about the management of their farm and how they integrate bee-friendly measures. You can watch the full recording of the interview and tour of the farm here

Hi Johan, could you start by telling us a bit more about the structure of your company and how you approach things?

Our company consists of two large parts: on the one hand Isabel’s parental company, which is operated as an arable farm. And on the other hand, my parental company, which is operated as a dairy farm with about 130 cows. Both companies switched to organic in 2016, and since 2021 we also make and sell our own hard cheeses and yogurt.

Around the dairy farm, the cows follow a grazing schedule in which they get a fresh pasture every day, only returning to the same pasture after three weeks. The vegetation in the pastures consists of a mix of grasses and herbs. Each herb species roots at a different depth, which makes the whole vegetation more resistant to drought. The herbs also provide a more balanced pallet of minerals for the cows’ diets. The clovers ensure that we do not have to apply additional manure to the grassland.

Because the cows only return to the same plot every three weeks, the herbs in the grass-herb mixture have plenty of time to grow back. This way each pasture can flower for about 10 days before the cows return to the plot, and thus there are always some pastures that are flowering. The bees really appreciate that.

Research carried out within the BEESPOKE project showed that field beans are largely dependent on bees

for good pollination. You also have field beans in your crop rotation. Could you explain how bees are supported on your farm?

In spring, there are many dandelions in the meadows as well as hazels, willows and some fruit trees that are going to bloom. Then the field beans bloom and when they have finished blooming, the clovers in the grass herb meadows begin to bloom intensively. The rotational grazing ensures that meadows are in bloom at any time. So we try to provide flowering plants in the area from early spring until late autumn

Johan, thank you very much for this conversation and for the tour of the company!

Of course, you are very welcome!

Watch the full interview recording and get to know Johan and his farm

photos: Inagro

Supporting Pollinators in the Grassland of the Marshlands

From farmer to farmer

Interview with Nils von Deetzen from Jade in Lower Saxony, Germany

Interviewed & revised by Mathias Paech, written by Anna Vollmer

The marshlands of Jade in Lower Saxony, Germany are home to Nils von Deetzen, his family and their farm. In total their farm consists of 175 hectares of which 15 hectare are managed as arable fields and 160 hectare as permanent grasslands for their dairy cows. On the arable fields Nils grows maize and cereal in rotation. Depending on the weather conditions, he either grows both at the same time or one after the other. The Hof von Deetzen is managed conventionally but Nils integrates wildflower strips, species-rich grasslands, Natura 2000 guidelines as well as lapwing and godwit nest protection into his farming practices.

The establishment of their species-rich grassland

In 2020, Nils started to establish BEESPOKE grassland seed mixes in collaboration with the Grünlandzentrum Niedersachsen/Bremen e.V. They sowed 5 hectares of species-rich commercial grassland on Nils’ marshland. On each of the 5 hectares a different composition of a grassland mix was sown. Besides the BEESPOKE mixes, Nils manages another 25 hectare of species-rich grassland and another 3 ha of

flower strips. The farmer started the establishment of the speciesrich grasslands with the motivation “to initiate new processes and try something new, which is a bit future-oriented”. He appreciates these areas for their ecological benefits providing pollinator-friendly areas. At the same time he values them to be able to further process the cuttings as silage to feed his dairy cows with. For Nils, the decision to implement the wildflower and species-rich areas was clear quickly. For his father Udo, it needed some more convincing. Paul comes from a generation where everything was supposed to be managed and grown fast and to a maximum. Nils says that, “now there’s such a slowdown process, so I had to lure him in with the little things – for example, that the seeds are provided and the costs are covered and this makes it more tempting”, Nils adds laughing. On their farm they aim to distribute their different fields, species-rich grasslands and wildflower areas across the land “like a mosaic” to create a valuable “interplay between the pasture grass and this speciesrich seed mixtures. […] We have a few fields where cereal grows, where corn grows. We have areas, which are used either more extensively or more intensively, so legumes or pasture grass. Then everything is spread out a bit so that there really is an alternation. We also have a few areas that are involved in agri-environmental schemes where we maintain field margins […].”

Maintenance and obstacles

All in all, Nils is positively surprised by how well the establishment and management of the areas worked out. “Red clover and white clover, they have established very strongly. Ribwort was also very well represented in the last three plots, although it was only included to a certain extent [in the seed mixes], but it has nevertheless established itself very well.” Before, these areas were managed as grassland. This led to weed infestation by sorrel. He avoided to use pesticides and managed to control the sorrel by mowing it early enough before its seeding to prevent further spreading. Over time, especially in the third year, gaps in the vegetation occurred. Nils suspects that the growth of the areas could be affected by foraging geese which bring quite severe damage to the grasslands of the area. However, Nils observed that the clover species spread out well and thereby also filled up some of the gaps.

The high amount of clover can impair the quality of the silage that Nils is making from the species-rich and wildflower cuttings. The high levels

photo: © Nils von Deetzen

of crude protein in the clover can negatively affect the cows. For this reason, Nils is cautious when making silage from the strips and prefers to mix the species-rich cuttings with some pasture grass. Thereby the silage he processed from the areas were not of worse quality than the ones made from the usual pasture grass. And the cows seem to really like the silage from the species-rich grasslands.

Monitoring pollinators and ecosystem benefits

Nils did not conduct active monitoring but definitely noticed a difference in his pollinator supporting areas. “[T]here were always butterflies or bees, they really appreciated the area. Always when you would walk through these areas you would see pollinators, which you would not have seen on the normal areas.”

Actively monitoring species on farmland might not only benefit the animals but might make farmers see their land with different eyes regarding habitat for wildlife. Nils receives subsidies for the protection of each lapwing and godwit nest on his land. By learning what to pay attention for in order to find and protect these nests, his awareness for the birds and their habitat on his land grew.

Wishes for further advice and recommendations to other farmers

The maintenance of the wildflower areas and species-rich grasslands and their sustainable management is something that Nils would like

to learn more about. This is in particularly important for him regarding the more restricted use of pesticides. He feels like there already is a lot of knowledge which is constantly growing, so he would like to stay updated with new useful insights. Moreover, he would like to learn more about how to deal with processing legumes as feed especially regarding the advantages of saving Co2 and using less mineral fertilizer. He would be open to receive more of this knowledge by participating in more farmwalk events or simply in a printed form.

Nils encourages other farmers to try out new things and to consider the participation in the BEESPOKE or a similar project. He recommends to just see how the participation and establishment of measures goes; figuring out what can be applied in the same way as in the project guidelines and what could be implemented in a different way adapted to own needs and farming practices Therefore, keeping an open mind and considering new opportunities to apply pollinator friendly or other agri-environmental measures could benefit the restoration of the surrounding nature as well as the development of the farm itself

photo: © Georg Bareth

photo: © Nils von Deetzen

photo: NIAB

Guides & Tutorials

Guides & Tutorials

One aim of BEESPOKE is to develop farmer friendly methods for measuring their own pollination and levels of pollinators and to improve pollination by establishing bespoke wildflower areas. To support these activities as well as general biodiversity we developed several guides and video tutorials.

Monitoring Pollination & Pollinators

By monitoring the numbers and diversity of pollinators you can gain valuable insight in the relationship between crop yield and pollination (potential pollination deficit). Thereby evidence can be provided to what extent the wildflower margins are benefitting crop pollination. With our guides you can learn how to estimate your pollination potential, how to conduct pollinator monitoring and how to identify solitary bees and bumblebees.

Guides & Tutorials

Supporting Pollinators & Biodiversity

If you want to take action for pollinators and general biodiversity on your land, the following guides are developed to support you with your efforts. Learn how to establish and maintain a perennial wildflower area, how other habitats can help biodiversity or how to build a nesting possibility for solitary bees.

Guides & Tutorials

Video Tutorials, Interviews & More

On our Youtube channel you can find many additional as well as complementary video tutorials which can help you support your efforts for pollinators. Get inspired by interviews with farmers who share their experiences and knowledge about pollinator-friendly measures. You can also find more videos with additional knowledge about pollinator-friendly farming, webinars, the BEESPOKE project in general or our project partners

Visit our webpage for all of our guides. If you are

interested in scientific literature, you can find our publications as well as further reading here as well.

photo: NIAB

Future & legacy of the project

The Legacy of the BEESPOKE Project

John Holland, Project Coordinator, Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust

Above all else our hope is that this project will highlight the importance of pollinators for both wild plants and crops leading to greater adoption of management practices to support them.

Crop pollination

We hope that through provision of user-friendly protocols and demonstration of the benefits of adequate pollination that more farmers and growers will make management of pollination a key component of their production systems. New information will be provided to complement that which already exists on the importance of pollination for major crops and for some new novel crops. This will include a predictive tool that can estimate the number of pollinators for any location across the North Sea Region. This is based upon the land-use, derived from satellite data, and the resources the different habitats provide for pollinators linked with their mobility.

Wild bee conservation

Through the development of targeted bespoke seed mixes, we will provide land managers with a way to encourage the types of pollinators needed for their crops. New grassland mixes will also encourage pollinators on grazing land. The seed selection tool will allow them to further refine or develop new mixes appropriate for their particular farms. The new seed mixes will also be used by a wide range of other insects helping to boost their falling numbers. Alongside these mixes we have provided training and produced written and video guides on how best to establish and manage these and other flowering habitats found on farmland. The provision of advice and tools to manage pollinators is essential to ensure pollinators are managed as best as possible

Guidelines on how to identify and monitor the main groups of wild pollinators have also been produced, so that land managers can monitor their levels over time and to help inspire more people to take an interest in pollinators and monitor their numbers.

Policy

The implementation of measures to support pollinators relies heavily upon sufficient financial support and appropriate agri-environment scheme options. Our work collating information about the member states current agri-environment schemes, feedback from land managers about how they perceive the schemes, and results from our own findings will be used to provide recommendations to NSR member state organisations responsible for agri-environment policy. This can ensure that uptake is at a landscape scale, helping to improve pollinator populations whilst our landscape models can help identify where such habitats are most needed. However, there may still be barriers to uptake but by better understanding these through our interactions with stakeholders, surveys and analysis we aim to overcome these providing extra incentives such as information about the costs and benefits. Overall, the project will generate some broad recommendations alongside much more detailed guidance about the management of pollinators and crop pollination.

Legacy

The project will develop many new training materials to help farmers and other land managers to survey and identify their pollinators, assess their impact on crop pollination and best manage their land to support pollinators. This will include written guides, videos and online tools. We will also have generated much new information about the role of pollinators in crop production which can help inform the science base, policy makers and land managers.

photo: NIAB

photo: NIAB

photo: Jan-Willem van Kruyssen

photo: NIAB

If you would like to stay in touch with us and receive all updates on the BEESPOKE project, just visit our website or social media pages!