God’s Mighty Earthworm

God's Mighty Earthworms

God’s Mighty Earthworm

By Sonia A. Randall

One of the most marvelous of God’s tiny creatures must surely be the earthworm. Its body structure may seem simple, but it is really a marvelous creation.

The services it performs for man are truly amazing. Before man used tools for plowing the earth to plant crops, God’s humble earthworm was plowing and keeping it fertile.

The earthworm’s network of tunnels in the earth allows moisture and air to reach the lower levels of soil keeping it moist and porous [with lots of air holes]. These tunnels also provide ready-made channels where plants may spread their roots as they grow and seek moisture.

Recycling is nothing new to this little fellow. The earthworm has been doing it for centuries, following God’s simple plan for its life. While excavating [digging out] its tunnels, it does not just shove the soil aside—it eats it!

The decayed plant material in the soil serves as the worm’s food. The other materials, while passing through its body, are broken down into different earth minerals and chemicals.

Afterwards, they will be in a form that tender young plants can easily absorb [take in for food].

This little laborer, the earthworm, propels [sends forward] itself through its tunnel using 200 ring-like ribs. It expands [spreads out] the rear ribs until they have a firm grip on the sides of the tunnel.

Then the worm contracts [pulls in] its ribs in front and pushes. By alternately [first one, then the other] expanding and contracting, it moves steadily forward, widening and smoothing its tunnel.

At the same time the worm exudes [squeezes out] a mucus from its pores to harden the sides of the tunnel and prevent them from falling in.

It is estimated [scientists made a  good guess] that a population  of earthworms [the number that live there] on an acre of land will move two to three tons of soil in a year. Under good conditions, they can move even more.

This probably makes the earthworm one of the world’s strongest creatures in proportion to [compared to] its size.

So next time you turn up an earthworm in your garden, remember what a miracle worker God has created in this little fellow. Place it gently back in the soil.

That earthworm and its friends can do more for your garden than an expert gardener working twenty-four hours a day!

© Sonia A. Randall

 

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