Landscape management practices for maintenance and enhancement of ecosystem services in a countryside

The paper presents a review of research on functioning of agricultural landscape, mainly on protection of ecosystem services, carried out by the Institute for Agricultural and Forest Environment, Polish Academy of Sciences in Turew in the period of 1970–2009. The paper concentrates on water balance and water pollution control and the protection of biodiversity in an agricultural landscape. The results of the researches show that the best way for maintenance ecosystem services is development of landscape complexity. Introduction of non-productive elements like shelterbelts, strips of meadows, small ponds allows for improvement of water balance, reduction of groundwater pollution even by 90% and enhancement of biodiversity.