Origins Page 35

ecosystems.  Thus the forest is more than a collection of organisms — it is a unified body, a God-given fellowship of life.

The Global Success of Mycorrhizal Networks

Scientists estimate that over 90% of land plants form some type of mycorrhizal relationship.  This staggering percentage indicates that nearly all plant life depends on fungi for survival.  Without them, forests, grasslands, and farmland would struggle to thrive.  This reliance elevates fungi from a mere helper to the essential engine of terrestrial ecology.

Forests cover roughly 31% of Earth’s land surface — an astonishing 4 billion hectares!  Much of this vast area relies on fungal networks to recycle nutrients and sustain life.  Without the hidden work of fungi, the Earth would soon choke with dead matter and become barren, incapable of supporting the richness of Creation.

Life on Earth Unsustainable Without Fungi

Fuel for Catastrophic Fires

The absence of fungi would create a deadly hazard: the massive buildup of dry, undecomposed organic material would fuel white-hot wildfires, burning with an intensity far greater than normal.  The sheer volume of tinder-dry fuel would guarantee apocalyptic and irreversible destruction.  Such fires could devastate ecosystems, sterilize soils, and release immense volumes of carbon and toxic gases into the atmosphere.

Annihilation of Seed Banks

This extreme heat would penetrate deep into the ground, cooking the earth itself.  Even the normally resilient and vital seed banks buried in the soil would be annihilated.  Seeds that might survive mild burns and regenerate

flourishing forests and grasslands would instead be completely incinerated and permanently destroyed.

The end result would be vast, deeply eroded landscapes — barren and unable to sustain life or regenerate vegetation.

Collapse of Plant Life

With seed-based renewal erased, future generations of vegetation would vanish, preventing ecosystems from rebounding once the flames had passed.  The green foundation of life on Earth would be gone.

The Unraveling of the Food Web

The consequences of unchecked wildfires would ripple throughout Creation. With plants destroyed, herbivores would starve as grasses, shrubs, and trees failed to return.  Grazing populations would collapse in famine, scouring a barren world for food that no longer existed.  Without this