PR - The Role Of Small Farms In Maintaining A Balance In Agroecosystems

Rural areas in Poland which offer biological and landscape diversity are of the most abundant in Europe. Small ecological farms, especially in southern and south-eastern Poland, still host rare weed species named in red lists of many European states. The diversity of animal and plant species in these areas is significantly higher than in the remaining parts of Poland. Consequently, the balance of agroecosystems is far more stable. The presence of rare weed species in the fields does not equal lower crop but contributes to maintaining of the considerable diversity of insects or birds. Preserving the mosaic structure of crop fields and traditional rural landscape is only possible on small farms and hence the importance of their further existence.

Keywords: weeds, preservation, small farms, agroecosystems, diversity