To reduce biodiversity loss in agricultural landscapes, more sustainable and environmentally friendly agricultural practices are needed. A research team from the Universities of Göttingen and Hohenheim in Germany, and Venda in South Africa, investigated how ecosystem services such as pollination could be improved in macadamia plantations. The scientists showed that a certain design of plantations - for instance, how the rows of trees are arranged, the varieties, and the integration of semi-natural habitats in and around the plantations - can increase the pollination performance of bees. The results were published in the Journal of Applied Ecology. ...
