The Passion of the Ant. This ant lives at the base of this passionvine and climbs to drink sweet, nutritious nectar from the extra-floral nectaries. Why, if you were a plant, would you give out nectar to any old passers-by if they are not also smearing your pollen grains on their furry bodies and moving them to fertilize another flower elsewhere, sowing your wild oats for you, so to speak? When I explained the scenario to my partner Chris, he called the ants the warriors protecting their village. This vine is a living home (kind of like the houses in Octavia Butler’s Lilith Brood, perhaps), and it lures ants with nectar so that they will protect the village from leaf chewing pests. Black eyed peas do this too, attracting both ants and wasps. Let’s say a butterfly comes and lays eggs on the vine, and caterpillars emerge chomping away. Ants will drive them off or eat them to protect their village and their food source. Another thing: some butterflies as young caterpillars will cannibalize each other, and so what does passionvine do? It makes nectaries that look like the eggs of that butterfly, tricking it into looking elsewhere for a safe place to lay! I take passionflower tincture some nights when I can’t sleep due to cyclical thinking. I eat the passionfruits on a hot day and scrunch up my face when the sweet tangy juices hit. This plant drew me in and convinced me to plant its seeds, which is why this particular ant and its colony have this particular village in our high tunnel. The ant and I are allied in our efforts to keep the passionvine alive and well for our mutual nourishment and healing. We sell and share seeds and divisions of these plants, sending its children and clones near and far, creating living villages wherever it takes root. How do we protect our villages and from whom? Who threatens to take our homes, our foods, and our lives? Who are our warriors? These are rhetorical questions, but I am inspired by the ways I’ve seen my communities support each other with mutual aid and protest during these times of pandemic, police brutality, white supremacy, and economic hardship. Let’s be the ant, protecting our commons. #seedkeeping #extrafloralnectaries (at Newtown Square, Pennsylvania) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBHs4gzAeS8/?igshid=mw15064qydyf