A discovery by Danny VG in habitat Garden on 07.06.2021. Papilio machaon (Papilio machaon) is a species of insect. Post your nature observations of Animal sightings in the NatureSpots App, too! #NatureSpots #Animal #Garden
A discovery by Danny VG in habitat Garden on 07.06.2021. Papilio machaon (Papilio machaon) is a species of insect. Post your nature observations of Animal sightings in the NatureSpots App, too! #NatureSpots #Animal #Garden
A discovery by Danny VG in habitat Garden on 07.06.2021. Papilio machaon (Papilio machaon) is a species of insect. Post your nature observations of Animal sightings in the NatureSpots App, too! #NatureSpots #Animal #Garden
A discovery by Danny VG in habitat Garden on 07.06.2021. Papilio machaon (Papilio machaon) is a species of insect. Post your nature observations of Animal sightings in the NatureSpots App, too! #NatureSpots #Animal #Garden
A discovery by Danny VG in habitat Garden on 07.06.2021. Papilio machaon (Papilio machaon) is a species of insect. Post your nature observations of Animal sightings in the NatureSpots App, too! #NatureSpots #Animal #Garden
A discovery by Danny VG in habitat Garden on 07.06.2021. Papilio machaon (Papilio machaon) is a species of insect. Post your nature observations of Animal sightings in the NatureSpots App, too! #NatureSpots #Animal #Garden
Semi-natural grasslands are a very common subcategory of the grasslands biome. These can be defined as: Grassland existing as a result of human activity (mowing or livestock grazing), where environmental conditions and the species pool are maintained by natural processes.
Although their plant communities are natural, their maintenance depends upon anthropogenic activities such as grazing and cutting regimes. The semi-natural grasslands contain many species of wild plants, including grasses, sedges, rushes, and herbs; 25 plant-species per 100 square centimeters can be found.
In many parts of the world, few examples have escaped agricultural improvement (fertilizing, weed killing, plowing, or re-seeding). For example, original North American prairie grasslands or lowland wildflower meadows in the UK are now rare and their associated wild flora equally threatened. Associated with the wild-plant diversity of the "unimproved" grasslands is usually a rich invertebrate fauna; there are also many species of birds that are grassland "specialists", such as the snipe and the little bustard. Due to semi-natural grasslands being referred to as one of the most-species rich ecosystems in the world and essential habitat for many specialists, also including pollinators,there are many approaches to conservation activities lately.
Source: Wikipedia contributors. "Grassland." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 13 Sep. 2021. Web. 14 Sep. 2021.
A buffer strip is an area of land maintained in permanent vegetation that helps to control air, soil, and water quality, along with other environmental problems, dealing primarily on land that is used in agriculture. Buffer strips trap sediment, and enhance filtration of nutrients and pesticides by slowing down runoff that could enter the local surface waters. The root systems of the planted vegetation in these buffers hold soil particles together which alleviate the soil of wind erosion and stabilize stream banks providing protection against substantial erosion and landslides. Farmers can also use buffer strips to square up existing crop fields to provide safety for equipment while also farming more efficiently.
Buffer strips can have several different configurations of vegetation found on them varying from simply grass to combinations of grass, trees, and shrubs. Areas with diverse vegetation provide more protection from nutrient and pesticide flow and at the same time provide better biodiversity amongst plants and animals.
Many country, state, and local governments provide financial incentives for conservation programs such as buffer strips because they help stabilize the environment even when the land is being used. Buffer strips not only stabilize the land but can also provide a visual demonstration that land is under stewardship.
Buffer strips are very important in helping to provide habitat for many species of wildlife in the open farm lands by causing an edge effect. With much of the land open on farms having an edge allows a safe-haven for animals to move between different ecosystems. Buffers are also helpful in conserving biodiversity especially to that of rare or endangered species through the incorporation of native grasses into their seeding by the landowner. Native grasses are especially important to pheasants, quail, chukar and songbirds because they provide the foods they need as well as the shelter from predators. Since most buffer strip areas have limited disturbance from farming it allows for a shelter to hide year round for many of the species including insects, birds, and mammals. When buffers run into and follow riparian areas along stream beds it is important to have larger vegetation like trees and shrubs that shade the water from the open sun. The water is then able to be cooler allowing for greater fish production and other aquatic plants and other biota to thrive in a less disturbed environment.
This area of vegetation following a body of water is noted as a riparian zone. These buffer areas often incorporate large trees that protect stream banks from excessive erosion and shade aquatic areas. The shade provided by the larger trees reduces water temperatures and light intensity from ultraviolet light. Debris including leaves and branches that fell from trees, often contain aquatic invertebrates important to the structure of the water following the "River Continuum" concept. Since the riparian zones contain a larger variety of plants the overall diversity is much greater as well. With more photosynthesis and higher amounts of available water plant primary production can increase in turn creating more potential food for the wildlife.
Source: Wikipedia contributors. "Buffer strip." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 9 Jul. 2020. Web. 28 Jun. 2021.
Permaculture is an approach to land management and philosophy that adopts arrangements observed in flourishing natural ecosystems. It includes a set of design principles derived using whole systems thinking. It uses these principles in fields such as regenerative agriculture, rewilding, and community resilience. Permaculture originally came from "permanent agriculture", but was later adjusted to mean "permanent culture", incorporating social aspects as inspired by Masanobu Fukuoka's natural farming. The term was coined by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in 1978, who formulated the concept in opposition to Western industrialized methods and in congruence with Indigenous or traditional knowledge.
Permaculture has many branches including ecological design, ecological engineering, regenerative design, environmental design, and construction. It also includes integrated water resources management that develops sustainable architecture, and regenerative and self-maintained habitat and agricultural systems modeled from natural ecosystems. Permaculture has been implemented and gained widespread visibility throughout the world as an agricultural and architectural design system and as a guiding life principle or philosophy. Much of its success has been attributed to the role of Indigenous knowledge and traditions, in which the practice itself is rooted. In turn, the rise of permaculture has revalidated Indigenous knowledge in circles where it was previously devalued.
The ethics on which permaculture builds are:
- Earth care: Provision for all life systems to continue and multiply.
- People care: Provision for people to access those resources necessary for their existence.
- Fair share: Setting limits to population and consumption so that people do not take more than what is needed. By governing our own needs, we can set resources aside to further the above principles. This principle is also described as share the surplus.
Permaculture emphasizes patterns of landscape, function, and species assemblies. It determines where these elements should be placed so they can provide maximum benefit to the local environment. Permaculture maximizes useful connections between components and synergy of the final design. The focus of permaculture, therefore, is not on individual elements, but rather on the relationships among them. Properly done, the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts. Permaculture seeks to minimize waste, human labor, and energy input and maximize benefits through synergy.
Permaculture design is founded in replicating or imitating natural patterns found in ecosystems because these solutions have emerged through evolution over thousands of years and have proven to be effective. As a result, the implementation of permaculture design will vary widely depending on the region of the Earth it is located in. Design principles derive from the science of systems ecology and the study of pre-industrial examples of sustainable land use. Permaculture draws from disciplines including organic farming, agroforestry, integrated farming, sustainable development, physics, meteorology, sociology, anthropology, biochemistry, engineering, and applied ecology.
Source: Wikipedia contributors. "Permaculture." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 27 Jun. 2021. Web. 28 Jun. 2021.
The word horticulture is modelled after agriculture; it derives from the Latin words hortus and cultura, which mean “garden” and “cultivation”, respectively. In contrast to agriculture, horticulture does not include large-scale crop production or animal husbandry. Additionally, horticulture focuses on the use of small plots with a wide variety of mixed crops while agriculture focuses on one large primary crop at a time.
Horticulture is the art of cultivating plants in gardens to produce food and medicinal ingredients, or for comfort and ornamental purposes. Horticulturists are agriculturists who grow flowers, fruits and nuts, vegetables and herbs, as well as ornamental trees and lawns.
Source: Wikipedia contributors. "Horticulture." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 30 Aug. 2021. Web. 13 Sep. 2021.
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