Protecting Farmland Pollinators – A Farmer’s Perspective

Tom Tierney, one of the 40 participating farmers shares his perspective of the Protecting Farmland Pollinators EIP. Tom owns and manages a family farm at Ballinafagh, Prospereous. He is currently growing cereals and 30 acres of forestry on the 180-acre Kildare farm.

I joined the Protecting Farmland Pollinator European Innovation Partnership (EIP) project in 2019. Being part of this project has further expanded my ambition of improving and preserving my farms biodiversity & linked me up with other like-minded farmers doing the same, some of which I’ve never met before.

You live, learn and love nature in all its forms

I’ve farmed this land since I was 16 alongside my father and educated to pursue a career in farming. No different from most farmers in Ireland today. In doing so you live, learn and love nature in all its forms. The indisputable real fact is farmers are a minority in society today and similarly natures biodiversity too, suffers the same minority status.

 

We won’t save natures biodiversity crisis if we don’t have custodians of the countryside, i.e., willing farmers!

Our countryside needs this positive actionable approach

The Protecting Farmlands Pollinators EIP is a great example of scientists and farmers working together through a policy framework to help identify how to help and improve biodiversity in Ireland. Although only a five-year program, I sincerely hope it gets further recognition and funding to continue long into the future. Our countryside needs this positive actionable approach.

Create a space for nature in your life

On my farm through the EIP I’ve created a number of bee nesting sites and now have solitary bees nesting on the farm. Also, I’ve planted pollinating plants in field margins and cover crops to help preserve pollinators. I’ve also dedicated a “space to nature”. In my case a seven-acre field that was previously in REPS and GLAS schemes is now in conversion with the help of nature into a wildflower meadow (hopefully). The natural rejuvenation experiment is in it’s second year. From a brief survey of the area (a 60-minute walk through the field in June), 21 species of flowering plants, 5 species of bee, 3 species of butterfly, a cricket, a seven spotted ladybird, a damselfly and a buzzard were recorded. Not bad for a short walk! Over the coming years this meadow may become a species rich grassland that can be used as a donor site for wildflower seed collection for local restoration projects.

The message I’d really like to impress upon you about the EIP program and the subsequent actions I’ve taken is that they are positive actions any one of us could implement! You don’t have to be a farmer. Homeowners can do the very same actions in your own back gardens! County Councils, Schools, OPW, Coillte, & numerous state bodies can do a lot more too.

 

“Create a space for nature in your life”.

 

Protecting Farmland Pollinators is an EIP (European Innovation Partnership) project being administered by the National Biodiversity Data Centre. The Project is funded by the EU Recovery Instrument Funding under the Rural Development Programme 2014-2022.

Is tionscadal EIP (Comhpháirtíocht Nuálaíochta Eorpach) é an Protecting Farmland Pollinators atá á riaradh ag National Biodiversity Data Centre. Tá an Tionscadal maoinithe ag Maoiniú Ionstraim Téarnaimh an AE faoin gClár um Fhorbairt Tuaithe 2014-2022.