Distant vibrations from the adjacent
zone scatter the ants.

A fleet of gyroscopic spinning tops
carve delicate trenches across a nearby
open field, carefully zipping the ground open
and closed to plant a new season’s seeds.
The disaggregated discs, distant relatives
of the

seed drill

, take turns weaving new
patterns of fertilizer and seeds between
the winter’s cover crop stubble.

New threads of

canola

and

wheat

are
stitched across perennial

alfalfa

returning for a final year. A caretaker
and his daughter delight in the dance.

Machine Ecologies