I love the spectacular symbiosis of my vegetable garden as harvest time approaches.
Beanstalks spiral up cornstalks, their tendrils teasing nearby tomato stems. Below, broad leaves protect ballooning squashes from the slugs that appear, seemingly from nowhere, after a rain, while providing water for passing furry creatures.
The synergism of a garden is an ancient and somewhat obvious idea. Many indigenous peoples honored the "three sisters" of corn, beans, and squash. My kids – three sisters – learned about the practice in grade school, and all recall the first meal that we grew: corn, beans, and squash.
Those memories returned as I read Alex Woodard's excellent novel Ordinary Soil.
To continue reading, go to DNA Science, where this post first appeared.