Tag Archives: Redbud

It is too early to start mowing

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As I was sitting outside soaking in the magical spring weather, I heard the sound of a lawnmower. The first thing came to my mind was, “Shit, not already!” I surveyed our lawn, already a beautiful lush green, and decided that it wasn’t that high yet. What is wrong with these people! It is the end of April and still cool in the evening. It can wait.

A week later, I heard the lawnmower again. The sound makes me very anxious, because once I start mowing; my life is committed to mowing 3 hours a week, every week until the fall (we have a rather large lawn, unfortunately). That’s a lot of time and fossil fuels (we have too much lawn for a push-reel mower) committed to keeping the lawn shorter than 4 inches tall. So of course, I start thinking of reasons why I should and can put mowing off. The first reason that came to mind seemed very reasonable. Mike did not check out the mower to make sure it is in good working condition. Therefore, it really didn’t make sense for me to start it up, because I couldn’t fix it, if it needed fixing. Heaven forbid if it broke while I was mowing.

A couple of days later, I heard the same lawnmower again. This time I noticed the beautiful buds on the Redbud tree, they were starting to open up. Then I surveyed the lawn for violet ~ there were starting to emerge too. Well, that was a no brainer and my best excuse for not mowing. There is no reason to mow a lawn until after the violets have been harvested from the lawn for at least five or more salads. Sure, I can go into the woods to harvest them, but nothing is better than harvesting flowers and herbs from your lawn. And you cannot harvest flowers and herbs after you have mowed over them, yuck! So folks, I have the best reason (besides using fossil fuels) for not mowing our lawn for a little while longer. I need to harvest my “lawn” first. It’s good to be a forager!

A salad made last spring ~ now that's the perfect reason to not mow the lawn.

My first spring salad of the year ~ now that’s the perfect reason to not mow the lawn.

Edible flowers

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I love adding color to my salads. Most of the year, I do this with vegetables – carrots, red, orange, & yellow peppers, beets and tomatoes. When spring flowers start blooming, my salads start to look like a rainbow. I cannot resist, as the blossoms are so beautiful and packed full of nutrients.

redbud tree

Redbud blossoms

Redbud blossoms

The Redbud (Cercis canadensis) tree blossoms are spectacular. Before the leaves appear, the magenta blossoms develop along the branches. The flowers look similar to pea blossoms and actually taste a bit like a pea. Not only are the blossoms beautiful, they are high in Vitamin C and antioxidants as well as linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid.

common blue violets in lawnCommon Blue Violets (Viola spp.) blossoms and leaves are lovely additions to a salad. I prefer the young leaves, as they are more tender. Violets are high in vitamins A and C.

YUM!

YUM!

Always remember, when foraging to make sure the area hasn’t been sprayed with any chemicals or by the family dog.

All information is shared for educational purposes only and has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.