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Earth first

Insect Crop Combat: Beetles vs Aphids

From the moment we plant our food in the ground to the moment we eat it, there’s always something else looking to get a bite too.

Whether fruit, veg or cereal, crops are a tasty morsel for many living things all the way through the process. Insects, for example, can be one of our biggest food foes. One method farmers use to protect their crops is something called beetle banks.

A beetle bank is a strip of land in the middle of a crop field specifically created for insects, not for crops. Beetle banks are intentionally put there to act as a home for aphid-eating insects and spiders. These beetle banks were the brainy idea of UK farmers from the early 1990s. The concept is simple, yet effective. Click through the slides below to find out more.

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