There’s an abundance of life at the farm.
Above ground co-existed tomato worms, frogs, spiders, dragonflies, gnats, and countless tiny insects not immediately visible to the naked eye. Birds, maybe finches, would also pass through the field too and occasionally sit on the cucumber trellises. In neighboring rice paddies, herons patiently hunted. Higher up, the resident hawk surveyed the land.
Buried within the earth were more critters. From the ones I could identify: rolly pollies (pill bugs), ants, millipedes, beetles of all types, and earthworms.
To simply say that they co-existed is misleading though. Every species had a reason to be there.
Bugs, insects, and worms feasted on decaying plant matter. They, in turn, fed the spiders, frogs, and finches. Herons and hawks, who were higher up on the food chain, dined on frogs and larger creatures.
It’s an oversimplified food chain that also neglects the vast microbial activity occurring as well, but this starts to give you a sense of the cumulative life being created and sustained.
This robust environment contributes to richer soil from which we, in turn, cull our crops. It’s an ecosystem we take part in and contribute to as well, however, in most systems we primarily detract from them.
I was so taken aback by the countless frogs scattering away from my feet as I walked through the beds and trimmed cucumbers. They were so plentiful I couldn’t resist capturing them in all their tiny glory. I’ll share them with you here.