Tussilago farfara | I Just Gotta Share…

When we bought our home in the spring of 2017, the gardens were quite a draw. They had been loved, nurtured and cultivated for almost 25 years. They start blooming in March and continue until November with lots of beautiful colors and flowers that pollinators adore. Once I had more time to spend on the land and get to know it better I realized the gardens were filled with many strangers. Most of the plants were cultivated and didn’t resemble their native cousins. Many natives like our beloved Goldenrod (Solidago, spp.), were weeded out.

Since we moved here, I’ve been trying to envision what the land would welcome. This has been an enormous and daunting task for me as I am a forager, not a gardener. I have always relied on Mother Nature to guide me; she always has the best designs. Who am I to mess with perfection? Nevertheless, it has become obvious that the land needs more and requires my support. But what and where?

In the first year, Mike and I created a nursery so I could bring my dearly treasured herbs over from the old house. They all loved their new home and thrived. Last year, I expanded the nursery and some friends made their way into it. I also brought in a couple of new herbs to get to know better, but they don’t seem to have overwintered well. Yet it is still early and we will see.

This year, I am trying my best to pay attention, listen and observe. I’ve started walking in our local forests and taking notice how the land and plants affect my heart and soul. Last week, I started to ask some plants to come home with me. I never take the first one I see and only take one or two that are growing in large groups. So far, they appear to enjoy their new home. I hope they thrive and multiply.

Here are some of the new additions to our land.

Trout Lily

When I see Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum) in the woods, I feel like I am home. For that reason, it made sense to try to bring her to our land. Even though, I’ve been told they do not transplant well, I thought it was worth a try. I found a large patch and tried my best to dig deep so I could release her entire bulb with some soil. The bulbs are known as a corm and are edible raw. They apparently taste like cucumber. I hope we will get a chance to taste them in years to come. I believe they are enjoying their new home. Time will tell.

Coltsfoot

One of my favorite spring indicators is Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara). Years ago, I read a piece where Susun Weed noted that an excellent cough remedy could be made by infusing their blossoms in honey. I had always wanted to try this but whenever I found an abundant patch of Coltsfoot, it was in a drainage ditch. And folks, no one wants medicine made from herbs growing in a drainage ditch ~ yuck! Hopefully, our new arrivals will flourish and give me a chance to try this remedy some point down the road.

Hepatica

Another lovely spring indicator is Hepatica. When the sun shines, it makes the forest floor sparkle. She gets her name from her leaves, which, like the human liver has three lobes. She was once a very popular liver tonic. As a result, over 450,000 pounds of dried leaves were brewed into tea during 1883 alone. That is a lot of leaves! I don’t have plans to start collecting leaves, but who knows what will stir me in the years to come. I am simply grateful she seems to be enjoying her new home.

Slowing I am bringing old friends to the land. It will be fun to see how they will change the feeling of the land. How do you decide what to bring home? Please share and I will continue to share.

I love exploring the woods all year round, but especially during the spring, it’s always thrilling to see what has emerged since my last visit. There’s something about seeing the evolution of the plants peeking through the earth on one visit, to them struggling towards the sun on another and then, finally, blooming. In the past, I’ve been honored to experience them emerge on my daily hikes. Unfortunately, the last couple of years my schedule hasn’t allowed me to go into the woods as much I would like, missing too many of my friends in bloom.

This year has been particularly difficult for me to slip into the woods regularly. However, on my annual birthday hike, I was more than blessed with a spring bouquet. Typically, there is a progression of blossoms in the woods. I call the first ones Spring Indicators: Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara), Trailing Arbutus (Epigaea repens), Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), and Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus). These tend to be the first arrivals and then as the weeks progress, others go into bloom as their blossoms disappear. This year spring has been different on so many levels, and perhaps the plants knew they needed to take advantage of the fine weather to make their move all at once. Lucky for me, it felt like everyone waited to bloom for my birthday hike. Not only was everyone blooming in concert, there was an extraordinary abundance of them. In the past, I might see only few Bloodroot in bloom. This year, I saw more than four large patches of them.

Quite frankly, I am blessed with a fabulous day to be born ~ May 4th. There is nothing better than having a birthday in May, when everything is breaking out of its winter slumber and painting the woods with a rainbow of colors. Although, winter seemed to linger way too long this year, I was not disappointed when spring decided to show herself on the day of my birth.

Check out all the lovelies along the trail.