There are still those who choose to grab the shovel: Stories of people who work the land with dedication in Ingeniero Thompson.

Morning starts early at the municipal nursery. At seven, Marcos Duarte is already checking on the saplings of poplars, willows, and paradise trees that germinate in rows under the warm winter sun. “I’ve always liked ‘planting’. I get along well with plants but life went in another direction,” he says while meticulously arranging a group of bananas and palm trees. Everything is very neat and there is abundance in the nursery; beyond, in some old tubs, the saplings of what will be the trees that will be used to reforest schools, public spaces, and also the garden of a private residence are growing. Marcos lived his entire life in Moreno, west of Greater Buenos Aires. He worked in security, also in the graphic industry, and together with his wife Silvia, they multiplied their hours between a private nursery (they did not produce but resold plants), a sewing workshop, and a ceramics workshop; the rhythm was overwhelming. “We never stopped. Between work and trips on the bus or train, ...