Vicky Baker

by Yiyi Zhang. The highlights of the 15th European Conference on Ecological Restoration included its balanced emphasis on the social, ecological and policy dimensions of restoration, valuable networking opportunities, and a field trip to restoration sites. I received helpful and encouraging feedback on my presentation “Mapping social-ecological archetypes to guide woody perennial restoration decisions” and had informative and inspiring conversations following highly relevant sessions and workshops.

In a new PERCS project, researchers are assessing the effect of hedgerows on parasitoid wasps and biological pest control services.

Parasitoid wasps are tiny agricultural heroes. They kill pest insects like spotted wing drosophila, which infest and destroy berries and thin-skinned fruit in British Columbia. The new PERCS project assesses the biocontrol activity of parasitoid wasps across hedgerows in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley. In consultation with community partners and knowledge holders, the team will develop resources on strategies to support parasitoid wasps and their beneficial services in hedgerows.

There is a window in the middle of summer every year where just like the bats, field technicians at Delta Farmland & Wildlife Trust (DFWT) scurry to farm fields and hedgerows across Delta. Rather than hunting insects and identifying roosting sites, we instead are deploying dozens of audio recorders to monitor the presence of bats in areas where we’ve established land stewardship projects with farmers.

Buxton Wetlands Phase 2 is bringing new life to the Vedder River floodplain by expanding off-channel wetland habitat connected to Peach Creek and the Vedder River. Led by Ts’elxwéyeqw Tribe Governing Council with support from Fraser Valley Watersheds Coalition and project partners, this restoration work is transforming an area once dominated by invasive reed canary grass and Himalayan blackberry into a healthier, more diverse wetland landscape.

The project will restore more approximately 2,000 square metres of wetland habitat

On June 2nd, members of the PERCS project travelled to Vancouver Island to attend a hedgerow demonstration day hosted by Habitat Acquisition Trust (HAT) and Sea Bluff Farm. Located in Metchosin, Sea Bluff Farm is a 10-acre certified organic farm run by Robin Tunnicliffe. Five years ago, with support from HAT, Saanich Native Plants, and others, Robin planted a diverse hedgerow of native trees and shrubs that has since grown into a thriving feature of the farm.

PERCS PhD student Lars Sturm from Simon Fraser University presented his project at the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanograqphy and International Society of Limnlogy (ASLO-SIL) joint meeting in Montréal in May 2026, winning a student presentations’ honorable mention. Congratulations Lars!

Introducing PERCS newest research team: VegCo. The new VegCo team came together in May 2026 with the goal of developing a standardized vegetation survey to use across the PERCS hedgerow network. Alongside documenting plant communities, VegCo also coordinates several insect monitoring projects that can be deployed alongside vegetation surveys. The “Co” in VegCo reflects this collaborative approach, bringing together multiple ecological monitoring projects to better understand the biodiversity supported by agricultural hedgerows.

On June 18th, PERCS researchers traveled out to Chilliwack and Agassiz, BC, for a Berry Field Tour Day. The goal of this day was to provide PERCS academic researchers with a perspective on the commercial berry industry and its challenges as a catalyst for future research. This event was co-hosted by Eric Gerbrandt, Research Director for the BC Blueberry Council, Raspberry Industry Development Council and BC Strawberry Growers Association, as well as Michelle Franklin, an Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Research Scientist.