The interplay of intercropping, wildflower strips and weeds in conservation biological control and productivity

Diversifying agroecosystems is instrumental to reduce pesticide use in agriculture. While different diversification practices have the potential to reduce pests, their integration at the agroecosystem level and the evaluation of their multifunctional effects remain limited. Through a two-year field experiment conducted in Germany, we tested whether associating intercropping (faba bean-wheat, followed by breadseed poppy-barley) with pluriannual wildflower strips strengthens the biological regulation of aphid pests and weeds, and enhances cropping system productivity. The contribution of flowering weeds to conservation biological control was also analysed. Aphid colonization rates, but also predator colonization and predation rates, on bean and poppy were consistently lower in intercropping compared to sole cropping. Associating wildflower strips to intercropping enhanced aphid predation in bean-wheat intercropping, and further reduced aphid colonization at 10 m distance from the flower s..., The data are retrieved from a field experiment conducted in Germany (50°47’14N, 7°16’38E; city: Hennef) in organic farming conditions during the years 2020-2022.
The experiment tested whether increasing crop diversity (sole cropping vs. intercropping) and field margin management (wildflower strip vs. crop strip) affects biological control of insect pests (aphids), weed biomass and productivity (crop yield, land-equivalent ratio). In addition in the intercropping systems, the experiment analysed the relationship between weed flowers and insects towards biological control.
Studied crops were faba bean (Vicia faba) and wheat (Triticum aestivum) in 2020-2021, and breadseed poppy (Papaver somniferum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare) in 2022.
All data were collected in quadrats (1m2 surface). One quadrat is always defined by the type of “Margin” (flower vs. control), “Cropping_system” (intercropping, sole cropping) and “Distance_(m)” (10 vs. 20, sometimes also 10_weed_free) and the experiment “Bl..., , # The interplay of intercropping, wildflower strips and weeds in conservation biological control and productivity

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.w6m905qxm](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.w6m905qxm)

The data are retrieved from a field experiment conducted in Germany (50°47’14N, 7°16’38E; city: Hennef) in organic farming conditions during the years 2020-2022.

The experiment tested whether increasing crop diversity (sole cropping vs. intercropping) and field margin management (wildflower strip vs. crop strip) affects:

* Aphid infestation and predator colonization rate: **Hatt_and_Doering_2024_aphid_and_predator_rates.csv**
* Predation rate of aphids by predators: **Hatt_and_Doering_2024_predation_rates.csv**
* Weed biomass at harvest: **Hatt_and_Doering_2024_weed_biomass.csv**
* Crop yield: **Hatt_and_Doering_2024_grain_yield_crop.csv**

In addition in the intercropping systems, the experiment analysed the relationship between weed flowers and insects with the following datasets:

* Abu...