S09 - Session P2 - Design of a “hot-spot” for beneficial insects in urban context

Authors: Giovanni Bazzocchi *, Andrea D'Aprile, Francesco Orsini

In cities, biodiversity and more specifically the population of beneficial insects is at threat. This study has the aim of providing guidelines for choosing the correct pairing of plants useful to attract and protect functional beneficial native insects, such as parasitoids and predators of plant pests, and pollinators. Duration and attractiveness of spontaneous flora flowering of residual green spaces enclosed within an industrial area located in the outskirts of Bologna has been monitored for 10 months (from February to November 2021). Weekly, a monitoring of flowering of both spontaneous flora and cultivated crops in urban farms was performed over an area of about 2 ha. The results led to the design and realization of a "hot-spot" prototype for improving the population of beneficial insects, in the context of an eco-horticultural infrastructure.