From 1996-1999, the RCD's Hedgerow grant brought together farmers, pest control advisors, and agency specialists to create five hedgerows as reduced-risk, sustainable Integrated Pest Management (IPM) systems. Multi-purpose, multi-species native hedgerows offer a myriad of farming benefits and the project resulted in educating landowners, Pest Control Advisor clients, Farm Bureau members, agency and university researchers, and native plant customers.

The reality is that farms are battlegrounds between bare dirt field borders, invasive weeds, and vulnerable monocrops. Chemical and mechanical solutions address symptoms, not causes. In contrast, biodiverse, native hedgerows can replace chemically-controlled areas and outcompete weeds, save soil, and harbor crop pest predators.

Funded by the California Dept. of Pesticide Regulation, this program aimed to resolve real and perceived IPM issues through demonstration and research. Formal and informal workshops, newsletters, media coverage, and group presentations built on five years of "Farming with Wildlife" workshops and numerous local farm tours. Products of the program included an instructional 10-minute "Hedgerow Installation" video, a brochure on "Hedgerow Establishment: Practices and Costs for Field Crop Farms in the Sacramento Valley," and several published articles. The video and brochure are available through the RCD, (contact Sheila Pratt)and the articles are available through the RCD and the Yolo County UC Cooperative Extension Office.

Ultimately, self-sustaining hedgerows decrease borderland tillage, pesticide use, and safety risks from chemical contact or equipment mishaps. They serve as noise and chemical buffers, between farms and cities, fugitive dust collectors, and excess nutrient filters. The five demonstration sites support farm and ecosystem health, providing sustainable systems that integrate the dynamic life cycle between crop, pest, and predator. The UC Extension Principal Investigator for the Program, Rachael Freeman Long, continues to study the insect and wildlife use of the program hedgerows.