Reconciling pollinators and plant protection work – focus on beekeeping

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In his opening speech, Head of Department József Csapó said that this was an unusual presentation, as it was not closely linked to the variety certification experiments conducted by Nébih, but it still had a reason to exist, as there are countless plants that are not wind-pollinated but are fertilized by insects. The first speaker was Márta Papp, a variety registration officer who has been beekeeping in her free time for many years. She explained beekeeping and the legislation relating to beekeeping from a practical perspective. He said that in his own opinion, beekeeping is an endless chess game with several partners at the same time. This is also true for agricultural crop production. He explained how and under what conditions bee colonies can be placed under the law, and under what conditions bees can be migrated. As the second speaker, József Sipos, a plant specialist and guest speaker, gave an exciting presentation on plant protection and bee poisoning. During his presentation, he explained that plant protection professionals are not solely responsible for the death of bees. There are irresponsible people in both sectors who use inappropriate products, do not use them according to the regulations, and do not treat the population they care for with the prescribed quantities.

After that, Márta Papp gave a presentation again on the relationship between plant protection and drone technology

During the presentation of the related drone law, she explained which drone categories are currently recognized in Hungary. It was also discussed who can carry out agricultural work with drones and under what conditions, which chemicals have already received permission for drone-related application. He explained what the “No Drone Zone” airspace covers. At the end of his presentation, he also explained what penalties the competent authorities impose in case of violation of the rules.

The fourth presentation was given by József Sipos on pollinating insects

In his speech, he detailed that in addition to domestic bees, many other insects also participate in pollination. In addition, he mentioned that there are animals that do not directly participate in pollination, but unintentionally carry out pollinating activities with their lifestyle, such as hummingbirds or fruit bats. He showed how much poorer the food supply would be without the activity of these species. The closing presentation was given by Márta Papp, in which she tried to propose solutions to resolve the tension between the two sectors and asked those present to help in common thinking. She emphasized that, first and foremost, all parties involved must fully comply with the legislation. In addition to the legislation, there are many opportunities for the two sectors to coexist peacefully. Here, she mentioned the creation of bee pastures, which, in addition to agricultural crop production – flowering plants not only attract pollinators to the established area, but also distract harmful insects from the cultivated crop – also plays an important role in increasing diversity. Earthworms participate in soil loosening, which also improve the soil structure. In addition, properly composed plant cover can also play a significant role in mitigating wildlife damage. She said that support can even be obtained for its creation, which helps farmers not to suffer a loss of income due to the area taken out of cultivation. This support can be used based on the “creation of green space and/or bee pasture field borders” option within the AKG. Annex 9 of the application, “List of bee pasture plant species”, lists in detail the plant species for which support can be used.

Nébih