WOODY PLANT USE AND PROPAGATION FOR BENEFICIAL HABITAT
WORKSHOP
EVALUATION SUMMARY
USDA, NRCS Plant Materials Center, and Farmscaping for Beneficials
Program, IPPC, OSU, Corvallis, OR February 20th, 2013
Gwendolyn Ellen, March 2013
Executive Summary
Total attendance at the February 2013 Farmscaping for Beneficials (FSB) and
Plant Materials Center (PMC) Woody Plant Use and Propagation for Beneficial
Habitat Workshop at the PMC in Corvallis, OR was 26. Most of the participants
were farmers (71%). The rest self-identified as agricultural support or non-profit
personnel, educators and landowners. This workshop was designed to teach
farmers and agricultural support personnel to learn to identify woody native
plants, propagate them for use in on-farm habitat enhancement and practice
cutting and planting slips. We were successful in achieving our workshop goals
as all participants who responded to the survey (14 out of 26 or 53%) expressed
the most skill increase in these three areas (see Knowledge/Skill Evaluation
Results chart below).
The 14 evaluation respondents had an average medium skill level in basic
knowledge of beneficial insects, the ability to identify different types of insectary
plantings and to choose appropriate native plants for specific on-farm habitat of
(3.4, 3.1 and 3.1 respectively) before the workshop. Participants, however,
showed a fairly sophisticated skill level (before the workshop) in identifying native
woody plant species (4.1). This year’s respondents reflected an average change
in skill level commonly seen in FSB events (about 1.5-2) in having a basic
understanding of beneficial insects, identifying types of insectary plantings and
learning new native woody species. The lowest perceived change in skill was in
the basic understanding of different beneficial insects. This corresponds to this
year’s change in format to concentrate less on beneficial insects and more on the
use, propagation and identification of woody native plants in farmscaping
habitats. It was also important for us to retain relevant hands-on field exercises
as requested by former participants. Our ability to cover other subjects in detail
in the 5.5 hour workshop is limited. Producers of the event feel identification of
beneficial insects, including native pollinators is well covered in the annual,
summer field day Farmscaping with Native Plants. This collaborative event with
Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, OSU’s Farmscaping for Beneficials
and the Corvallis PMC will be in its 6th year this June.
The largest perceived changes in skill/knowledge level (+2.9 and +3.5
respectively) occurred in the participants' ability to understand the propagation
methods of woody native plants and to be able to cut and plant slips. As these
have been the highest positive skill changes in all the previous woody native
workshops this indicates we are consistently successful in teaching these skills.
This is illustrated below in Table 1.
Knowledge/Skill Evaluation Results
Table 1:
Average change in skills and abilities.
Scale of 1 to 7 (1 = no ability or skill, 7 = very able or skilled)
before
after
ability to:
workshop workshop
To have a basic understanding of different
beneficial insects (n=14)
3.4
5.2
To identify different types of insectary
plantings (n=14)
3.1
5.4
To learn new native plant species (n=14)
To choose appropriate native plants for onfarm habitats (n=13)
To understand the propagation methods of
woody native plants (n=14)
To be able to cut and plant woody native plant
slips (n=14)
change
+1.8
+2.4
4.1
5.6
+1.5
3.1
5.3
+2.2
2.7
5.6
+2.9
2.4
5.9
+3.5
Note: n values are different from 14 (evaluations returned) due to N/A being selected
One hundred percent of the farmer respondents stated that attending the
workshop will change what they do to enhance habitat on their farms. Seventyone percent will propagate woody natives and create new habitat for beneficial
insects (beetle banks, insectary plantings, flowering cover crops, bee nest boxes,
etc.) on their farms. Thirty-six percent will consider landscape ecology in future
pest management decisions, and adjust management practices (tillage, mowing,
pesticide spraying) to increase beneficial insect populations. Other farmers
wrote in that they would do better site preparation, and intercrop planted areas.
Another commented here that they now realize how much more beneficial habitat
helps on the farm.
The two identified agricultural support personnel respondents both stated this
workshop will change how they intend to advise clients on farm management
practices that support beneficial insects and that they will incorporate beneficial
insect habitat enhancement into already existing trainings in farm bill programs.
One will advise farmers to adjust management (tillage, mowing, etc.) where
possible to increase on-farm beneficial insect populations and one will advise
them to create new habitat for beneficial insects (beetle banks, in-field insectary
plantings, hedgerows, etc.). Both will advise clients to propagate and use local
native plants in on-farm habitat.
Ninety-three percent of the respondents expressed that their expectations of the
workshop were met or exceeded. It is interesting to note here that three of the
respondents requested the workshop be longer to enable more practice in the
exercises and to present more information. The workshops have been extended
over the years from 3 hours to 5.5 hours.
Additional information respondents requested are: more details on identification
of beneficial insects, anything we can start or do more of in late winter/early
spring, native herbaceous seeds, whole soil tilth, more Q&A time especially for
insects, a support website to share pictures and share data, and to present the
cons of using natives at certain sites (such as spreading). Other comments
include: “The workshop gave me all the tools I need to plan additional native
plantings and extend our hedgerow. I wish I had known as much when we
started the hedgerow”; “This was a wonderful workshop. I was given an
abundance of information that I will be studying for quite a while”; “The charts
about bloom time were very helpful”, and “the reference sheets and copies of
slide shows with information made it easy to get all the info and able to add extra
notes”.
Planting slips for a hedgerow