Leafcutter ants' fungus farming

Leafcutter ants have cultivated fungi for tens of millions of years—long before human agriculture. Workers cut leaves and other plant material, process it, and add it to underground gardens as substrate. The colony feeds on the cultivated fungus, including its nutrient-rich structures, rather than on the leaves themselves. Ants maintain the garden by removing infected sections and waste and by suppressing parasitic “weeds” through behavioral and microbial defenses.