Landscape-scale expansion of agroecology to enhance natural pest control: A systematic review

Summary

Ecological intensification of agriculture (EIA) aims to assure food security by harnessing ecosystem services while minimizing external inputs and environmental harms. One manifestation of EIA proposed worldwide is agroecological farming, which will affect future landscapes, biodiversity and make assurance of crop yields more reliant on management of natural pest control. Using a systematic review we examined available knowledge to forecast the consequences for natural pest control of a landscape-scale transition to agroecological farming. A large body of information showed that prevailing agroecological practices can enhance natural pest control at the field level. This was, however, highly context specific (organisms, crop types or regions) and often modulated by landscape complexity, albeit in an inconsistent way. Consequently, our generic understanding of the functional responses of natural pest control to agroecological management remains limited. Furthermore, the consequences of a landscape-scale expansion of agroecological farming for natural pest control was hardly documented, with results suggesting limited effects. Available modelling tools and approaches to forecast natural pest control were diverse and promising, but the integration of accurate descriptions of farming practices at the landscape scale remains a challenge. Few studies integrated socio-economic aspects and we present some approaches to guide and co-design the transition to future agroecological landscapes.