Professor James Bullock of the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology was one of the speakers at the 2015 Oxford Farming Conference, held at the Oxford University Examination Schools from 6-8 January.

1. Can environmentally-friendly farming also
be productive?
James Bullock
NERC Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
jmbul@ceh.ac.uk

2. Agri-environment schemes
• Implemented in the EU through the CAP (but also
elsewhere in the World)
• Targeted primarily at wildlife, but also other
environmental benefits – reducing pollution, storing
carbon, increasing soil health, etc
• Budget in the EU ca €2.5bn per year
• Payments compensate farmers for “profit foregone”

3. Agri-environment schemes do work
Arable plant survey (20-km)
Bumblebee survey (10-km)
Bird - assemblage studies
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0 100 20050
Kilometers
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0.05
0.10
0.15
0.20
0.25
0.30
0.35
0.40
0.0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
3.5
4.0
0.0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.8
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Control General Evidence
Control General Evidence Control
vs.
General
Evidence
vs.
General
Evidence
vs.
Control
a) Plants
b) Bumblebees c) Birds
Common species
Rare species
-1.0
0.0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
No.commonspecies
No.rarespecies
No.commonspecies
No.rarespecies
Hedges’d
• Although they need to be well designed

4. But are AES simply a cost to productive farming?
• Encouraging wild bees as crop pollinators?
y = -1.8621x+ 558.56
R² = 0.202
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
0 50 100 150 200 250
Pollinatordensity(indi.ha-1)
Distance fromfieldboundary (m)
Wild_bees

5. Worldwide – wild pollinators enhance crop fruit set
• Wild insects more important for crops than honeybees
Changeinfruitsetcompared
tonoinsectpollinators

6. But are AES simply a cost to productive farming?
• Encouraging natural pest control?
Numberofadultaphids

7. Might AES enhance crop yields?
• Studies of blueberries in the US & of mangoes in S.
Africa show wildflower patches increase pollination and
fruit yield

8. The Hillesden Project
• Quantify effects of agri-environmental measures on
biodiversity, beneficial species & crop yield
• 1000ha commercial arable farm
• Three treatments applied to 50-60ha patches:
- Cross Compliance (0% land removed)
- Typical Entry Level AES (1% land removed for
two wildlife habitats)
- Entry Level Extra AES (6% land removed for six
habitats)
• Habitat location in awkward/low yielding margins
/corners

9. Block 1
Block 2
Block 3
Block 4
Block 5
Design

10. Hillesden: monitoring
• 10 years of monitoring
• Crop yield & inputs
• Beneficial species associated with
crop production (pollinators, pest
control)
• Declining farmland species (e.g.
birds, butterflies)

11. 0.90
0.95
1.00
1.05
1.10
1.15
Cross
Compliance
ELS ELS Extra
YieldasRatioofRegionalaverage
Croppedarea
0.90
0.95
1.00
1.05
Cross
Compliance
ELS ELS Extra
YieldasRatioofRegionalaverage
Whole field
a) Cropped area
b) Whole field
Effects on yield (6yrs): all crops (wheat, OSR, beans)

12. 0.40
0.50
0.60
0.70
0.80
0.90
1.00
1.10
Cross
Compliance
ELS ELS Extra
Yielddeficitasratioofnational
average
Beans - cropped areaEffects on yield: Beans
a) Cropped area
0.40
0.50
0.60
0.70
0.80
0.90
1.00
Cross
Compliance
ELS ELS Extra
Yielddeficitasratioofnational
average
Beans - whole field
b) Whole field

13. a) Cropped area
b) Whole field
Effects on yield: Wheat

14. 0.8
0.9
1
1.1
1.2
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Yielddeficitasratioof
Regional/Nationalaverage
Whole field
CrossCompliance
ELS
ELS Extra
Yield trend with time
0.8
0.9
1
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
YieldasRatioofRegional/National
average Croppedarea
CrossCompliance
ELS
ELS Extra
a) Cropped area
b) Whole field

15. Using AES more broadly for sustainable farming?
BLOCK2
11a
10
9
7
6
5
4
3a
3
2
1
11b
11c
13
14
A41 Grass
Corral
Cranwell
Speeds
Great
Speeds
Cow
House
Browns
0 130 26065 Meters
Waddesdon Estate
Expermintal Layout
ENHANCEMENTS
Treatments
Control
Enhanced
Enhanced Options
OptDesc
Ditch
EF2/HF2 Bird
EF22
EF4/HF4
EJ9
EK2/3
Early Annuals
Fences
HF1/HK8
HF10 Sandwich
HF10 Shop Window
HF10 Wildflower
Hedge
Leave Existing
Other
PC
Racehorse Paddock
BLOCK 2
Disc
Feed
Slot Wildflower
strips for crop
pollinators &
pest control
Legumes into
grassland/
arable
reversion for
carbon capture
and decreased
flooding/erosion
Cover crop,
buffer strips &
sediment ponds
for water quality
Wildflowers,
rare plants,
birds for
cultural value

17. Farmers have a very important role
• Farmers with longer and more intense experience in
AES produce better quality margins
• And so they have more birds, bees & butterflies
Improving
agri-environment
schemes
The FarmCat project