leaf-cutting
Ant farming behavior
Leaf-cutting describes insects, especially certain ants and bees, that cut pieces from leaves.
Leaf-cutting ants carry leaf fragments to their underground colonies, where they cultivate fungus on the decomposing material—they're farmers, not eaters, of the leaves themselves.
Leaf-cutting bees use the pieces to line their nests.
Cutting vegetation for health
- trimmingCutting away excess
- clippingPiece cut out
- snippingCutting in small bites
- shearingCutting away fleece
slicing · incising · sectioning · stripping · thinning · deadheading · pinching · defoliating
Ant that farms fungi
- colonyDependent territorial settlement
- foragersThose seeking wild food
- soldiersMilitary personnel who fight
- workersPeople doing jobs
mandibles · trail · nest · mutualism · symbiosis · pheromones · defoliation · tropical
Giving something its form
- bonsaiCultivated miniature potted tree
- pruningCutting vegetation for health
- ornamentalFor beauty, not function
- sculptureShaped three-dimensional art
hedge · aesthetics · symmetry · form · artistic · design · geometric · spiral
Larval moths or butterflies
- beetlesHard-winged insects
- sawfliesHerbivorous wasp cousins
- grasshoppersJumping, chirping insects
- slugsShell-less land mollusks
damage · pest · infestation · chewing · holes · skeletonizing · notching · defoliation
Act of spreading widely
- rootingActively cheering someone on
- nodesPoints of connection
- hormoneBody's chemical messenger
- vermiculiteExpandable insulating mineral
transplanting · grafting · cultivar · nursery · greenhouse · bedding · hydroponics · potting
pruning
Cutting vegetation for health
shearing · slicing · incising · sectioning · stripping · thinning · deadheading · pinching · defoliating · scissors
leafcutter
Ant that farms fungi
- colonyDependent territorial settlement
- foragersThose seeking wild food
- soldiersMilitary personnel who fight
workers · mandibles · trail · nest · mutualism · symbiosis · pheromones · defoliation · tropical · rainforest
shaping
Giving something its form
- bonsaiCultivated miniature potted tree
- pruningCutting vegetation for health
- ornamentalFor beauty, not function
sculpture · hedge · aesthetics · symmetry · form · artistic · design · geometric · spiral · espalier
caterpillars
Larval moths or butterflies
- beetlesHard-winged insects
- sawfliesHerbivorous wasp cousins
- grasshoppersJumping, chirping insects
slugs · damage · pest · infestation · chewing · holes · skeletonizing · notching · defoliation · feeding
propagation
Act of spreading widely
vermiculite · transplanting · grafting · cultivar · nursery · greenhouse · bedding · hydroponics · potting · clone
leaf-cuttingbrowsing
Casual examination of options
grazing · filter-feeding · sap-sucking · nectar-feeding · seed-eating
leaf, cutting, leaves, leafy, leaflet, leafed, leafless, cuts, cutter