Flower strips can be an important component of integrated pest management and contribute to reducing pressure on agroecosystems, which is why they are increasingly implemented as part of agri-environmental programs. They can be used as a multifunctional agronomic tool because they can prevent the decline of species diversity in the agroecosystem and increase functional biodiversity, which is a prerequisite for the provision of ecosystem services, such as pollination and natural pest control. Research highlights the great potential and multifunctionality of flower strips. This paper provides a synthesis of the most important information and research findings regarding flower strips and may be a useful tool in relation to the European Green Deal, which aims to move the EU towards a green transformation. Where intensive chemical treatments in agriculture have contributed to the degradation of the agricultural landscape, flower strips can support its ecological intensification.

Studies on nanoparticles’ effects on plants are relevant for horticulture. This study aimed to test the influence of zinc oxide submicron particles (ZnO SMPs), zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs), and zinc oxide nanoparticles combined with silver nanoparticles (ZnO+1%Ag NPs) applied at 100 and 500 mg·L⁻¹ on the regeneration and biochemical activity of adventitious shoots in Chrysanthemum × morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl. ‘UTP Burgundy Gold’ and ‘UTP Pinky Gold’. The original microwave solvothermal synthesis and characteristics of the ZnO samples were described. Internodes were cultured on the MS medium with 0.6 mg∙L⁻¹ 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and 2 mg∙L⁻¹ indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). In ‘UTP Burgundy Gold’, the highest shoot regeneration efficiency was obtained for 100 mg·L⁻¹ ZnO SMPs and 500 mg·L⁻¹ ZnO NPs treatments (6.50 and 10.33 shoots per explant, respectively). These shoots had high or moderate chlorophyll and carotenoid contents. In ‘UTP Pinky Gold’, the highest shoot number was produced in the control (12.92), for 500 mg·L⁻¹ ZnO SMPs (12.08) and 500 mg·L⁻¹ ZnO NPs (10.42). These shoots had increased chlorophyll (a+b)-to-carotenoid ratios. In ‘UTP Pinky Gold’, the ZnO SMPs and ZnO NPs affected the anthocyanins biosynthesis, whereas ZnO + 1%Ag NPs decreased the phenolics accumulation. These results are important for the improvement of chrysanthemum micropropagation.

In order to increase biodiversity in cultivated areas, the implementation of agri-environmental programs is proposed, including interventions and eco-schemes. Flower strips are one such proposal. In order to achieve satisfactory results, the appropriate selection of plants is crucial. In flower strips, the number and diversification of overwintering plant species are important. Our observations suggest that the species diversity observed in the second year of the strip’s presence in western Poland composed of mostly annual 14 plant species did not overlap in the next year. The flower strip was established on soils in a very good rye complex. The average monthly air temperature in both seasons was similar. In the winter months after the establishment of the flower strip, the lowest temperature at the ground level and the lowest air temperature were recorded in December (−5.4 °C and −13.7 °C, respectively). Hydrological conditions were not favorable, including a very dry March. Wild species originally from the soil seed bank were dominant. The selection of the appropriate species composition of mixtures intended for flower strips should take into account not only the preferences of beneficial insects but also environmental conditions. The possibilities of the selected plant species are important. A large variety of spontaneously emerging species (considered weeds) can also successfully colonize existing gaps in the flower strips, providing an increase in biodiversity. From the beginning of June to the end of July, the share of flowering plants from the seed bank ranged from 42.59% to 88.19%, while among originally intended plant species, it was only 11.81–57.41%. In May and at the beginning of June, two intended species that were intensively flowering, Trifolium incarnatum L. (over 70.5%) and Phacelia tanacetifolia Benth. (26.47%), were definitely dominant. In later observations, it was noted that, unfortunately, the sown plants had a low level of flowering compared to the wild plants found in the flower strip. It is very important that flower strips include species that also bloom in July and August, and wildflower plants can highlight the attractiveness of the flower strip to beneficial insects and are a valuable addition. This paper evaluates the suitability of a commercially available seed mixture in terms of the floristic attractiveness and overwintering potential of annual plants.

Maintaining biodiversity in agrocenoses is becoming an important element of sustainable development strategies. Flower strips can perform various functions, and their use in the agricultural landscape is a form of a natural mechanism for regulating the agricultural habitat and improving the effectiveness of biological methods of combating crop pests. This manuscript is a case study in Wielkopolska National Park, a valuable wildlife area situated in a temperate zone characteristic of the climate conditions of western Poland. The purpose of this study was to analyze the species composition of plants in a flower strip two years after sowing a mixture of seeds of perennial plants, and to determine the diversity of the collected arthropods depending on the flowering intensity of plants in the strip. The most intense flowering period in the flower strip occurred in June, when the number of flowering plants was the highest and belonged to one species, Trifolium repens (81.52% of all flowering plants). In the same month, the largest share of beneficial arthropods were specimens from Hymenoptera/Parasitica (29.15%), which may indicate their preference for T. repens. The share of beneficial arthropods in relation to all caught arthropods was higher in June (58.74%) than in July (35.16%), with Hymenoptera predominating, represented mainly by Parasitica, which may indicate their preference for species from the genus Trifolium.

This article describes benefits of the application of zinc oxide submicron particles (ZnO SMPs), zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) and ZnO NPs combined with silver NPs (ZnO + Ag NPs) in chrysanthemum micropropagation. Single node explants of Chrysanthemum × morifolium (Ramat.) Hemsl. ‘UTP Burgundy Gold (UBG)’ and ‘UTP Pinky Gold (UPG)’ were inoculated on the Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium and treated with 100 mg · L ⁻¹ , 200 mg · L ⁻¹ , or 400 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO SMPs, ZnO NPs (1.5% H ₂ O), ZnO NPs (6% H ₂ O), ZnO + 0.1% Ag NPs (1.5% H ₂ O), ZnO + 0.1% Ag NPs (6% H ₂ O), ZnO + 1% Ag NPs (1.5% H ₂ O) and ZnO + 1% Ag NPs (6% H ₂ O). Generally, the tested materials stimulated the growth and development of plantlets. In ‘UBG’, the most prominent treatments affecting increases in the number of leaves, micropropagation coefficient, shoot length and shoot FW/DW weight included 400 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO SMPs and 100 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO NPs (6% H ₂ O). In ‘UPG’, the treatments with 200 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO + 0.1% Ag NPs (6% H ₂ O) and 200 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO + 1% Ag NPs (6% H ₂ O) were the most successful. The latter treatment stimulated an intensive development of root systems in the two studied cultivars. High values of leaf area, perimeter and width were reported in both cultivars for 400 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO + 1% Ag NPs (6% H ₂ O). As compared to the control, the treated plants were characterised by a similar or, most often, lower content of chlorophylls and carotenoids. The randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and start codon targeted polymorphism (SCoT) marker system analyses of the 400 mg · L ⁻¹ ZnO SMPs/ZnO NPs/ZnO + Ag NPs-treated chrysanthemums confirmed their genetic fidelity with the control plants. The obtained results can be implemented in the commercial large-scale production of chrysanthemums.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) exhibit antifungal properties and may be applied for limitation of pathogen growth in crop production. The objectives of the study were: 1) to investigate and compare the effects of ZnO submicron particles (ZnO SMPs) and ZnO nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) on the in vitro response of Botrytis cinerea , Fusarium oxysporum, and Alternaria alternata and 2) to evaluate the impact of those particles on suppressing disease symptoms caused by the three plant pathogens on potted tomato plants ( Solanum lycopersicum L. ‘Bawole Serce’). In the in vitro experiment ZnO SMPs or ZnO NPs at the concentration of 0, 100, 200, 500, 1000, and 2000 mg/l were applied. In the in vivo experiment, potted tomato plants were infected with pathogens and sprayed with ZnO SMPs or ZnO NPs suspensions at the concentration of 500 mg/l. Experimental objects included also non-infected control plants, as well as infected and ZnO SMPs/NPs non-treated control plants. The addition of ZnO NPs and ZnO SMPs to the PDA medium significantly inhibited the growth of mycelium of all tested pathogens. However, the advantage of ZnO NPs over ZnO SMPs in inhibiting the growth of mycelium has not been demonstrated. Interestingly, the lowest tested ZnO SMPs/NPs concentration (100 mg/l) caused a significant reduction of mycelium growth of F. oxysporum and A. alternata (up to 33.32%). As for B. cinerea , only the concentration of 500 mg/l and higher concentrations of tested material samples limited the growth of its mycelium (up to 82.67%). In vivo experiment on tomato plants did not confirm the effectiveness of ZnO SMPs in the reduction of B. cinerea and A. alternata infection, in contrast to ZnO NPs, which significantly limited the growth of all pathogens (by between 56.99% and 65.11%).