Phil Foster first decided to plant two mixed native hedges on opposite sides of his organically managed vegetable fields in the mid 1990s. He wanted to know if hedgerows could increase biological diversity and augment production on his home ranch. After observing insect predators and parasitoids on the newly planted natives, Phil knew the experiment had paid off.  

Phil has hedgerows along many field edges and insectary habitat interspersed throughout most of his crop fields.

Today, Phil has hedgerows along many field edges and insectary habitat interspersed throughout most of his crop fields. He uses alyssum, cilantro and white dill within the fields to draw the beneficial insects into his cash crops where they can provide pest control and pollination. "The hedgerows are allowing a native population to build up, and then they can move to areas in the farm where we have flowering habitat," says Phil.

Near his house, he replaced invasive species with riparian trees along the edge of the San Benito River, and planted a windbreak to moderate the strong winds that blow through the San Juan Bautista, California, countryside. Phil says that more recently he's come to realize the climate impacts of his hedgerows due to their deep root systems. "They're photosynthesizing; they're capturing carbon and they're moving it deeper into the soil."

Learn more about the hedgerows on Phil's ranches and hear about beneficial insect research from Dr. Tara Pisani Gareau of Boston College in the video below:

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