The largest global assessment of its kind has shown that plant diversity increases populations of predators to suppress pests before they cause significant crop damage.
The meta-analysis by a large international team of scientists, combines data from 149 field studies – 109 of them in croplands – in 27 countries across five continents, with co-authors including Dr Ben Woodcock of the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology. It is the first global study to compare the impacts of plant diversity on natural pest predators across croplands, grasslands and forests.
Conventional agriculture has focused on single crops, but there is a growing awareness that increasing plant-diversity in these systems can have major benefits for the control of pests. This is achieved through intercropping – where different crop species are grown close together – as well as planting cover crops and wildflower margins, and adopting mixed livestock-arable farming systems.
The study, published in Science Advances, found that in plant-diverse systems:
- Both the abundance and species richness of natural pest predators increased.
- The abundance of predatory insects in organic farming systems was found to be eight times higher relative to pest species.
- Even where pesticides were used, the abundance of pest predators was 50% higher than plant-eating pests.
- In organic cropping systems plant performance increased by 17%, although for non-organic systems this was much lower at 0.5%.
Dr Woodcock said the study provided important evidence that investing in biodiversity including rewarding farmers for creating diverse landscapes can deliver practical agricultural benefits alongside nature recovery goals.
“Plant diversity is not just good for wildlife; it can actively support crop production by strengthening natural pest control. This reduces farmers’ reliance on chemicals, which leaves them less exposed to price spikes and results in less air and water pollution,” he added.
Paper information
Nian-Feng Wan et al. 2026. Plant diversity modifies multi-trophic interactions in croplands, grasslands and forests. Science Advances. DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aeb8680. Open access.
The study was led by East China University of Science and Technology, and involved more than 180 researchers across the world.