A recent news item (in Greek) from a local online newsletter serving the village of Vrisa redirects to a post on alternative approaches to current practices in olive grove and vineyard cultivation. That post in turn refers to an EU funded project being carried out in Spain whose main objective is to halt biodiversity loss. The project is a follow-up of a previous one whose aims included improving the ecosystem services provided by olive farming through restorative actions that are technically, environmentally and economically viable and effective, and contribute to the integration of biodiversity in EU agriculture.
The concept reflects the current philosophies of “regenerative agriculture” and “no-till farming” which are gaining ground in popularity, especially for the production of organic crops, and also include ideas such as “wild flower corridors” in groves and orchards for natural pest control. There are undoubtedly practical drawbacks which have not been foreseen and the introduction of new ideas is also never an easy task. However, in view of the current dramatic changes in climate, any new approach deserves some attention and it will be interesting to see what results the project will produce when it ends in 2026.