Optimizing buffer strips for insect-derived ecosystem services

Plant diversity is an important factor when determining diversity at higher trophic levels, including insects that mediate ecosystem services. Organic farms are required to establish vegetative buffer strips to mitigate pesticide and genetically-modified pollen drift from neighboring farms; however, few guidelines exist regarding plant species composition and configuration required within the buffers. We sampled and assessed the insect communities found in treatments that included mixes ranging from 2 to 12 species of native, perennial forbs and grasses and compared these treatments to plants commonly found in buffer strips. Mean comparisons from the first season of data collection showed treatments had significant effects on the abundance and richness of arthropod guilds. We will continue inferential analysis and use exploratory methods to further describe the beneficial insect communities across treatments and to determine the plant characteristics responsible for beneficial insect abundance and diversity.