Our life living off the land in our log cabin, breathing fresh mountain air, and getting back to basics.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Spring Has Taken Hold

Ah, home sweet home. It's nice to be back after my long, productive trip. Spring has welcomed me with little speckles of green dotting the woods...

...the apple trees are budding (we hope we get fruit this year; last year a hail storm stripped the tender blooms from their stems)...
 ...my rhubarb is coming up (exciting because I thought I killed it last year).
 .
Violets wait patiently for me to harvest them to make jelly (my favorite).

Johny's already eaten several dandelion salads.

Johny tilled the garden with our friend Ronnie, spread horse manure,
 and planted kennebec and red potatoes.

He also discovered a new wild edible (to us, it was here before we were), field garlic (wild onions).
It grows in clumps and looks like long grass. You dig a clump (always following the rule of four - take some, leave some for someone else, leave some for the animals and leave some to propagate)...
 ...pull the skin off and wash it...
...and eat it. You can eat both the greens and the bulbs. It's very similar tasting to garlic; Johny likes it raw but I find it too strong. I'll use it in cooking the same way I do onions and garlic. 

Hunting and eating wild edibles is one of our favorite things about this time of year...soon the morels with their uniquely patterned skin will be popping up, and ramps too. I came back just in time, welcome spring!

Thanks for reading my blog, see you tomorrow,
Lise

6 comments:

Linda said...

What lovely signs of Spring, Lise!

Dad/Pepere said...

I was introduced to wild onions by Mexican children while visiting a small farm/ranch in Mexico many years ago. I like the taste. Hugs!

A Colorful World said...

I love hunting for wild edibles! Interesting wild garlic you found! Also love that you eat the dandelions and the violets. So many people miss out!

Oh, and yes, trimming bougainvillea is a PAINFUL experience! :-)

Powell River Books said...

Spring is a great time, but I wish it would stay around. We keep bouncing back and forth. We did get our ocean boat in the water today, ready to go when we have some warm nights to start cruising and sleeping aboard at night. - Margy

Glenda Beall said...

Love the photos of spring. I found some violets along side my driveway this week. Reminds me of when i was a child and picked them in the woods to take home to Mother. She always put them into a small glass and placed them in her kitchen window.

Lise said...

Thanks Linda.

We enjoyed them dad, though I think the greens are best raw. The bulbs add a nice flavor raw or sauteed. Hugs back!

Marie, this is just the tip of the iceberg! There are so many wild things to enjoy, and I agree, it's great fun to hunt them.

I agree Margy, we actually may get some flurries and it's supposed to freeze. I hope everything that's budding survives!

That's a lovely memory Glenda. I like the violets in a small vase too.