Pigs and ecology:

Starting early and staying close to home

The first pig I fell in love with was Wilbur, of Charlotte’s Web fame. That was SOME PIG, as readers of the children’s book will know. The story had hints of more truths yet to come: cycles of life, and the webs of life.

Later I ‘met’ real pigs at local farms we visited when I was a child and again when my children were young. The last couple of years we have walked often on Abbey property that keeps pigs; these pigs are so popular they have become icons of the Abbey. You are welcome to purchase magnets, keychains and postcards with a large charismatic image of the pig in the gift shop.

New piglets at Quarr Abbey, Isle of Wight

Recently we watched a film on Netflix called “The Biggest Little Farm” which is a 2018 film about John and Molly Chester, a couple in Southern California who set out to create a 200-acre self-sustaining farm from barren disused ranch lands. John Chester is a wildlife photographer by training, so the cinematography is amazing, as is the storytelling. One of the main stars of the story is their first pig, Emma¹. Caring for Emma over the years provides a window into the ups and downs of creating a sustainable farm.

Over the first few years, they work hard to bring soil health back first of all, knowing that growth and health of everything else is dependent on fertile soil. As the farm develops lush dark vibrant soil, and they introduce more plants and animals to grow and herd, so too does the native wildlife that also returns and thrives. The ever-changing delicate balance of native species, predators, and prey interact and tip in and out of harmony with the farm.

As just one example, once the fruit trees have grown and are producing abundant stone fruit, so in come the gophers that eat the tree roots, the swifts that damage the fruit and the snails that eat the leaves. I’ll leave you to learn how it all ends up. There are ways to balance out these prey with their own predators, but it takes some missteps to learn how to get these populations in balance. As their mentor Alan York says, “Balance and coexistence with the land is a delicate, patient dance, with no guarantees.”

Over and over, every solution they introduce to solve one problem creates another problem. In each case they use only biological controls, no chemicals or non-sustainable treatments, and therein lies the complexity. Eventually they learn to stop, observe, and pay more attention, for the next solution is often already in their grasp. As the web of species the farm supports grows and the connections between them link and weave, the solutions come increasingly from within, rather than outside.

The first time I remember hearing the word ‘ecology’ I was 12 years old, standing next to our neighbourhood reservoir on a field trip from school to learn about the local ecology, whatever that was. Apparently, we were supposed to learn about the plants and animals who lived there and how they each contributed to an interconnected web of life: that was ecology. On that warm, dry mid-morning, I was far more distracted by watching the cute boys and figuring out how I could stand closer to them than vague webs of life. However, as the teacher described what we were looking at, he drew me in with his focus on the plants. It was the first time I learned that plants developed a certain style of leaves and stems on purpose.

He asked us to look closely at a couple of plants we were standing next to: a manzanita with it’s light green, stiff smooth leaves and its bright red bark that peels off in little curls like stiff ribbon, and the nearby chamise plant, with it’s tiny close-to-the-stem needle-like leaves and tiny white flowers, both characteristic of dry chaparral habitats.

Manzanita

Chamise, Adenostoma fasciculatum

Their home environment is characterised by a hot and dry summer drought, alternating with short, very wet winters. As a consequence, the leaves on the plants developed a very specific strategy to cope with those conditions: small glossy leaves that do not lose much water to evaporation during the dry season, and deep dense root systems, to be able to draw water up from the lowest reaches of soil. And most surprisingly, we learned that their seeds often germinate only after intense fires. Well, that was surprising! It seemed a drastic strategy to me, but intriguing nonetheless.

We learned more that day, such as which insects and small mammals depend on these plants for food sources. The chamise that sprouts immediately after a fire provides important food for a variety of animals, it’s bark supplies nest material, and the plant itself is a cover habitat for birds, deer, and lizards.²

All plants developed strategies to attract the pollinators they need to reproduce. The colour of flowers, shapes of the petals, and locations of the pollen itself all help make sure the insects find the flowers and allow the the plant to reproduce.

Even though as a geographer, I had studied the ecology of many different landscapes and geographies around the world, I never really paid much attention to what that meant in my own backyard, beyond noticing recently which plants seemed to bring more pollinators. I mainly thought about how the plants in my gardens needed to provide a secondary benefit beyond their intrinsic beauty, such as fruit, or flowers that smell or can be eaten, and bonus points if the plant itself is edible.

This year, since I have started to panic about climate change on a regular basis, I am trying to be a little less self-centred in my plantings and also to include plants that provide food and habitat for the native creatures that we have replaced. We are now including plants with flowers that provide pollen for the many invertebrates who are so important to a healthy ecosystem, and not just because I like the blossoms. Our limited existing soil is already filled with worms, so I am very thankful for that.

Less welcome hitchhiker, sharing garden bounty

Our friendly gardener who we have hired to help with the overall design and heavy lifting hammered up the concrete path to the size of much smaller chunks that we can keep onsite and use in the design of the soil-rich garden. The chunks will keep the soil draining and also provide a more solid but porous substrate for new smaller pathways through the vegetation. We are flipping the current balance in the garden from hardscape with a few plants around the edges to mainly plants, with a few stepping pathways between them. This is Britain after all, so we need a path to navigate through planted areas without always wearing wellies after the rains.

We have a large ash tree budding out right now where the local wood pigeons have been spending a lot of time nibbling away at the light green feathery buds. The jackdaws have been grabbing small twigs off the ground for nest material. A spunky blackbird has staked out territory in our garden and is establishing it’s dominance over another potential interloper. It also sings beautifully in the late afternoon and also in the very early morning.

This morning I was delighted to see my first dragonfly in the garden nosing around the olive tree. I wish we had the room and lifestyle to support a few chickens, but that won’t work with our nomadic tendencies. As for pigs, I’m content to go visit them in the nearby farms and buy the vegetable produce that comes from the pig’s contributions to a healthy sustainable farm. And I’m always delighted to reread a childhood favourite to be reminded of the web of our lives.

Like the Chesters, when I spend time in the garden, I tend to stop, observe and pay more attention. I’m hopeful this year the balance in our garden will tip to improve the biodiversity of plants, bugs and animals who share space with us. It’s the least we can do.

RHS Garden Rosemoor

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Have any of you seen The Biggest Little Farm? If you have, I’d love to know what you think. Are you worried about climate change? What do you think of pigs? Did you read Charlotte’s Web? ❤️

Many thanks for reading! Hope you have a wonderful week ahead.

xx Sabrina

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1. If you want to see a lovely tribute to Emma, click here: https://www.apricotlanefarms.com/emma-the-pig/

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adenostoma_fasciculatum