More diverse but less intensive farming enhances biodiversity

Agricultural landscape heterogeneity is an important component for protecting and enhancing biodiversity, as Tscharntke et al. [ 1. Tscharntke T. et al. Beyond organic farming – harnessing biodiversity-friendly landscapes. Trends Ecol. Evol. 2021; 36: 919-930 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (51) Google Scholar ] creditably point out in an opinion article. They argue for a redesign of conventional farming to enhance biodiversity by diversifying cropland and significantly reducing field size, preferably to one hectare. They hypothesise that reducing field sizes while maintaining conventional fertiliser and pesticide usage, could provide similar biodiversity benefits than organic farming but avoid the yield losses associated with organic agriculture. We question this scenario from an agronomic and ecological perspective, as the intensity of farming systems is known to affect biodiversity and yields simultaneously [ 2. Gabriel D. et al. Food production vs. biodiversity: comparing organic and conventional agriculture. J. Appl. Ecol. 2013; 50: 355-364 Crossref Scopus (169) Google Scholar ].