It has been proven: Propagating native plants massively increases biodiversity

Creating near-natural green spaces with native plants makes sense and significantly increases the diversity of insects living there. This is confirmed by a study in Melbourne, Australia, the results of which have now been presented in the specialist journal "Ecological Solutions and Evidence".

Over a period of three years, the number of insect species increased sevenfold in the area studied.

This means that the ecological benefits of urban greening projects are finally clear and have also been scientifically confirmed.

What exactly was examined?

An area of 195 m² in the center of Melbourne's urban canyons, which was originally only covered with two trees and lawn, was planted with twelve native plant species and the soil quality was specifically improved.

The result is impressive and gives so much hope: the number of insect species increased significantly.

In the first year there were five times as many, in the third year only nine of the original twelve plant species were still present, but the number of insect species increased sevenfold to 94 different species.

Why are many different insect species so important?

Apart from the obvious importance of biodiversity as a whole, its function ranges from recycling nutrients to pest control and providing food for other animals, not to mention preserving plant diversity.

Some are important for recycling nutrients, others are very popular with reptiles or birds as prey, while others keep pests at bay. Just as insects benefit from plant diversity, the latter in turn benefits from the increase in the diversity and number of insects living there.

"Integrating nature into our cities has been shown to bring a wide range of benefits, from wellbeing to increasing biodiversity and mitigating climate change," says the British Ecological Society about the study.

pro.earth conclusion

Conversely, this clearly shows that political decisions should be made with care and with an eye to the future - every flower meadow counts. 💚