Intensive land management with high use of pesticides and fertilizers enables high stock densities with high yields. However, this leaves little to no room for biodiversity on the cultivated area (e.g. Krauss et.al. 2011).

Flower strips of various annual and perennial arable weeds are usually used as field margins to promote general and functional biodiversity (Luka et. al. 2021). Alyssum is known to promote biological control (Tiwari et. al. 2020, Ribeiro 2017) and is being tested in various cropping systems.

Cultivation systems without the use of synthetic chemical pesticides in the field are particularly dependent on natural control mechanisms in plant protection, which can be specifically promoted and supported. These include open breeding systems (banker plant systems) of beneficial insects with, for example, Alyssum maritimum, which are to be tested and established in the NocsPS system. By providing Alyssum as a food source (pollen and nectar) and retreat, the chances of survival and reproduction for various beneficial insects can be improved. These include, for example, Orius- predatory-bugs, hoverflies, lacewings and parasitoids. In addition to comparative studies of the predator-prey relationship of aphids, the insect biodiversity in general is compared between the cultivation systems in wheat. In particular, wild bees can benefit from the Alyssum strips and can use the NocsPS system as a partial habitat.

Working hypotheses:

• NOcsPS enables high and stable yields in winter wheat while avoiding the use of synthetic pesticides and leads to comparatively higher biodiversity performance.
• Alyssum strips increase functional biodiversity in the NocsPS system and contribute to the successful natural regulation of aphid populations and promote wild bees.
• The highest effects in natural pest regulation and on biodiversity are expected from the reduction of fertilization (wheat) in combination with Alyssum strips.

In addition to the weekly net catches from the beginning of May, pests (aphids with sucking damage) and beneficial insects on the wheat plant are assessed from BBCH 63 (flowering) to 77 (milk maturity). For this purpose, 50 stems lying one behind the other are visually inspected and counted. The use of yellow traps and ground photoelectric sensors enables further biodiversity studies. In the pea crop, the studies are limited to counting pea aphids and their predators on the plants during the relevant infestation period and enable statements to be made about the influence of the management system on the predator/prey relationship and thus on functional biodiversity.

The population dynamics of aphids is dependent not only on the weather and the cultivation method but also on the potential of natural enemies. The occurrence of aphid-eating species groups such as hoverflies, lacewings and ladybirds is linked to the availability of host or prey species. Their abundance and occurrence are important indicators of the natural potential for pest control.

The following results are to be achieved for the evaluation of the NOcsPS cultivation system:

• Integration of alyssum stone-seed into the NocsPS wheat cultivation system
• Strengthening of functional and general biodiversity in the NocsPS cultivation system of wheat and peas
• Targeted promotion of aphid antagonists and wild bees in the NocsPS cultivation system