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Long-term grassland fallow and short-term meadow fallow represent alternative fallowing strategies for biodiversity conservation on farmland. Conventional grassland mixtures are used to establish long-term grassland fallows, whereas short-term meadow fallows are sown with specific meadow seed mixtures and require regular re-establishment to maintain the abundance of sown species. This study examined the impact of fallow type and landscape structure on the species richness and abundance of four taxa: plants, bumblebees, butterflies and birds. Long-term grassland fallows and short-term meadow fallows were studied in four contrasting landscape types in Finland, differing in the cover of forest and perennial grasslands. The fallow type and landscape structure affected each species group differently, and the value of a particular fallow type was also modified by landscape setting. Bumblebees were most abundant in short-term meadow fallows, whereas butterflies benefited more from long-term grassland fallows. Species richness of plants and butterflies were higher in forested than in open landscapes. Long-term grassland fallows promoted species richness of butterflies as well as the abundance of foraging edge birds in forested landscapes, whereas short-term meadow fallows enhanced the abundance of foraging edge birds in open landscapes. In landscapes with high grassland cover, the breeding density of open farmland birds was higher in meadow fallows than in grassland fallows, while the reverse was true in landscapes with low perennial grassland cover. The fallowing strategy thus can be adapted to the landscape context depending on the specific objectives. For overall biodiversity enhancement, establishing and managing different kinds of fallows is important.

Farmland biodiversity dramatically declined in Europe during the 20th century. Agri-environment schemes (AES) were introduced in the late 1980s in European Union countries as a solution to combat biodiversity decline. We examined the effectiveness of AES in enhancing biodiversity in a new EU member country (Estonia) over the period of 2010–2012. We compared species numbers and abundance of bumblebees and birds, plus cover of flowers, between three farming systems in two regions of Estonia. Farm types included conventional and two under AES (organic and a less strict environmentally friendly management agreement). Environmentally friendly management practices in Estonia include diversified crop rotations, at least 15% of arable land (including rotational grasslands) under legumes, permanent grassland strips, protection of landscape elements, reduced applications of agrochemicals, etc. The two selected regions (North and South) differed in landscape structure, soil types and crop yields. Flower cover and bird species richness and abundance without the dominant species (skylark) were higher on organic farms. Bumblebee species richness was significantly higher under both types of AES than under conventional farming. Flower cover, abundance and species richness of bumblebees and birds were significantly higher in the more heterogeneous landscapes of Southern Estonia. Environmentally friendly management may be a viable alternative to organic farming for a widely accepted, simple but large-scale greening of agricultural landscapes.

A novel agri-environment scheme for Environmental Fallows (EFs) was introduced in Finland to replace a former obligatory set-aside under the Common Agricultural Policy. It currently keeps fallow at nearly 7% of the agricultural land area and therefore may make a unique contribution to the enhancement of farmland biodiversity on the national scale. Farmers can chose from four types of EF fields (game, grassland, landscape, and meadow) or their combination as long as their total annual area falls within 5–15% of the field area. We studied the biodiversity value of EF fields in three regions across Finland ( n = 229) based on survey data of vegetation in four fallow types. We compared EF plant communities to those of other non-cropped biotopes (margins and semi-natural grasslands) ( n = 99). The meadow type sown with low competitive grasses and meadow species has proven to be the most species-rich EF type, approaching the diversity level of semi-natural meadows. Vegetation of the grassland type varied considerably ranging from swards similar to those of production grasslands to ones typical for semi-natural meadows. The vegetation composition of the game and landscape types of EF differed most from the other non-cropped biotopes, and other EFs. Plant species richness in the perennial fallows correlated positively with the parcel size (through increased within-field diversity) and age, and variation in the sward height. It was negatively related to the sward’s height and density, and the reported fertility level before EF establishment. Plant species richness in EFs was not related to the forest cover in the surrounding landscape. The scheme to a greater extent than the former set-aside contributed to both the amount and diversity of non-cropped vegetation on the landscape level. The long-term efficiency of the current scheme is likely to be compromised by its untargeted and unbinding nature.

We reviewed studies on the biological state of agricultural drainage ditches in the temperate and boreal zones of the Northern Hemisphere. We looked at the relative importance of ditches for farmland biota as compared to that of other habitats, and assessed the degree to which biological communities of ditches contribute to the provisioning of ecosystem services. We evaluated impacts pertaining to replacement of open drains by subsurface drainage, removal of main ditches, rehabilitation of old drainage systems, and maintenance of ditches. Most ditches support species also common elsewhere. Whenever comprehensive surveys were conducted, ditches were shown to provide valuable wet vegetated non-cropped habitats to both aquatic and terrestrial taxa, supply food resources lacking in otherwise dry and intensively managed cropland, and perform connectivity functions within a wider landscape. Regionally ditches were shown to harbour rare species or species not found presently in other farmland habitats. Some functions of drainage ditches, such as regulating water flow and nutrient retention, are likely to depend on the composition and structure of biological communities of ditches, though the issue remains poorly explored. The biggest threat to the quality of ditch networks as ecosystems is presented by a severe runoff from the fields, management in disregard of a habitat value of ditches, and removal of ditches.