top of page

AGRICULTURE & STEWARDSHIP:
FARMING WITH WILDLIFE

Contact us for:
  • more information about our initiatives on farms as well as partner initiatives

  • a free farm visit from a local biologist to learn more about wildlife and habitats on your property

  • an assessment of wildlife habitat values on your property

  • information, support, and assistance in improving habitats on your property

  • information on how to become a Wildlife Habitat Steward

  • Clean water : plants in natural areas help filter sediments and pollutants out of water

  • Flood control : Wetlands act as sponges, slowing flood water and giving that water a chance to enter groundwater.

  • Bank stability : Plant roots help slow water and anchor soil in stream banks, slowing and even preventing erosion.

  • Soil retention & erosion control: trees and shrubs provide a natural protection against wind and dust. These buffers play a valuable role in erosion control and soil retention as the plants' roots hold soil in place.

  • Homes for pollinators and beneficial insects : retaining natural areas on your farm will help ensure pollinators, beneficial insects and wildlife have a home.

  • Frost Protection: wetlands provide frost protection, which can protect tree fruits in early spring. Water in ponds, creeks, and wetlands helps regulate temperature around them, which can reduce fruit loss in "frost pockets"

RESOURCES

Okanagan Similkameen Stewardship Restoration of pond in fruit tree orchard

CONTACT US FOR A FREE SITE VISIT
OR FOR A PDF COPY OF THIS PAGE

Okanagan Similkameen stewardship species and spaces

SPECIES & SPACES
RESOURCE LIBRARY

Okanagan Agriculture - Wildlife Habitat Steward

BECOME A STEWARD

wsow_edited.jpg

SECONDARY POISONING

D. Bersea Farming with Wildlife in the Okanagan

SHORELINES IN AGRICULTURAL SETTINGS

Okanagan Grassland Ranch Stewardship

GRASSLANDS STEWARDSHIP:

FOR RANCHERS

Okanagan wetland restoration on farm

WETLANDS IN AGRICULTURE

8646c2_6fba2f92be644063ac553903b2886e37~

ATTRACTING NATIVE POLLINATORS

Okanagan Invasive Species Hound's Tongue

INVASIVE SPECIES

VBlow_Great%20Basin%20Gophersnake%20at%2

BEING SNAKE SMART

Yellow-bellied_racer_edited.jpg

SNAKES IN AGRICULTURAL SETTINGS

Okanagan Agriculture Stewardship Cows and Fish

COWS & FISH

Intern at Coldstream pond.jpg

CARING FOR YOUR SHORELINE

efp log.jpg

ENVIRONMENTAL FARM PLAN

Benefits of Natural Areas
Pests vs Beneficial Wildlife

WHAT DO NATURAL AREAS DO FOR YOU?

Helpful Wildlife

Wildlife provides many benefits to agricultural properties including pollination, composting of organics to provide nutrients for crops, filtration of water and pest management. Further, keeping strips of native plants along creeks and rivers can help with flood and erosion control. 

 

Enhancing and conserving natural biodiversity can often increase productivity of farms by encouraging pollinators and beneficial predatory insects. Agricultural properties, in turn, can provide valuable habitat for the region's wildlife while taking advantage of the benefits that stewardship of wild areas provides.

Natural areas can also reduce the need for pesticides because native plants attract beneficial insects and other wildlife that eat agricultural pests and also help with pollination.

Native plants attract native pollinators, which are considered more efficient pollinators than regular honeybees (Farming for Bees, Xerces Society 2015). Effective pollination is essential for many local crops and is vital to producing one-third of all the food we eat.

 

Native bees are estimated to contribute 1.2 billion dollars per year to the value of Canadian crop yields. In addition, many pollinators, such as hover flies, wasps, and lacewings, are also

voracious predators of unwanted insects.

 

Pesticides can be a very effective tool to manage insect pests, but can kill off useful predators as well as pests creating ever increasing needs for pesticides.

okanagan similkameen Creek brook river habitat riparian fence planting farm cows ranch sustainable farming farms okanagan similkameen
okanagan similkameen wetland pond habitat wildlife sustainable farm farming orchard vineyard habitat environment ecology permaculture

SUSTAINABLE PEST MANAGEMENT & BENEFICIAL WILDLIFE

Farming is an important land use and major contributor to the economy in the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys. Farmers are stewards of important wildlife habitat, and have a critical role in conservation and stewardship. Sustainable agriculture in the region can benefit both natural capital as well as the farm.

Okanagan Similkameen Stewardship provides assistance and support to landowners, including farmers, who contribute to wildlife habitat stewardship, conservation and restoration while still maintaining agricultural production on their properties. Participation is voluntary, no rights are lost- what we do is try to find solutions that benefit both your farm as well as wildlife that may use it.

Stewardship Tips

STEWARDSHIP TIPS
Some best management practices

(Click to view full size)

okanagan similkameen Sustainable Agriculture Tips for Farms Stewardship habitat riparian area vineyard grazing integrated pest management native plants netting fencing water cows sheep orchard vegetation

Original artwork by Dianne Bersea

For more Living in Nature guides, check out the Resources column

Encouraging Beneficial Wildlife:

Keep strips of native trees and shrubs

Establish a buffer zone with native plants. A buffer zone is a wide strip of plants between sensitive habitats and pasture/cropland. They provide places to find food and shelter for wildlife, including endangered species and pollinators. Vegetation buffers are recommended to be 30 m wide by provincial Riparian Areas Regulation. Check out our guide:  "Caring for Your Shoreline" for ideas!

Use local, native plants

Consider planting clumps of native flowering plants and adding water sources to enhance habitat for pollinators. Many local native plants, like yarrow, are suitable for planting between rows and in buffers.

Check out our guide: "Attracting Native Pollinators" for ideas.

Provide corridors

All wildlife, from bighorn sheep to snakes, need to move around the landscape. Leaving habitat corridors on your property can help reduce human conflict and road mortality by allowing wildlife to move safely between larger areas of habitat and wintering dens.