We’ve had cold and windy weather out here in the middle of Pennsylvania. I’ve been enjoying a little extra time with my handknit sweaters this year. I keep my house cool, an old habit from childhood. 

My stepdad was a thermostat hound. It didn’t matter where he was in the house; he could hear that tiny click the thermostat made if one of us dared to turn the heat up.

Lectures about putting more clothes on and “when you pay for the fuel oil, you can touch the thermostat” would ensue from wherever he happened to be.  

I’ve been poking around the flower beds at my new place to see what’s going on under the layer of weeds. I was pleasantly surprised to find lots of hosta shoots coming up by the backdoor (thank you, previous tenant, and daylilies and coral bells coming to life by the kitchen door.

I see some tasty spring dishes in my future, as both hosta and day lily shoots are quite tasty. (A word to the wise: I would not recommend daylilies for the inexperienced forager, as some of their Asiatic cousins are poisonous.) 

And my favorite edible invasive weed is popping up as well – garlic mustard. I’ll bet if I walk out in the fields, I’ll even see new stinging nettle popping up. The purple dead nettle is up already, which reminds me, I need to whip up another batch of tincture as we’re headed into allergy season.

I have a dear mushroom-hunting friend. We both tend to go quiet in our chatter throughout the winter, but as soon as spring rolls around, our mushroom texts start flying again. He shocked me with photos of morels the other week.

They’re a month early!

I’ve been foraging for ages, a habit instilled in me by many a walk through the woods with my dad when I was a kid. I have to say, as a gardener, it’s a great way to fill that space in the spring when it’s still too early to garden. Foraging and gardening go hand in hand. 

It’s something I encourage all gardeners to look into. So, consider this me encouraging you to learn about foraging near you.

Check out local foraging Facebook groups. Look for groups on Meetup. Read books (specific to your area of the United States). Look for online courses or workshops near you. It’s funny. Once you know what local plants are edible, you see food all around you.

Alright my friends, we had another great week filled with new material from the Rural Sprout writers. Be sure to keep an eye on your inbox as we’ve got more planned for this week to help you get your spring garden off to a great start.