LokeMani<p>The first taste of spring. Sorrel, ground elder, dandelion, and chives made it into today's breakfast sandwich. 🥪</p><p>Keeping our property rather wild and unruly has many benefits for the overall balance and biodiversity. And an additional perk is the forage growing all over the place. 🌿 The first leaves are now peaking up through the dead grass left behind from last autumn.</p><p>Tip: Consider not cleaning up the garden in autumn. Leaving dead plants to break down over winter is less work and acts as a thick mulch. This mulch provides nutrients to the soil, makes it harder for new weeds to establish themselves, and protects everything hiding underneath from frost. It also allows insects and animals to forage for leftovers.</p><p>If the remaining material gets in the way in spring, it can always be cleaned up at that point, when most of its winter benefits have already been enjoyed by plants and animals alike.</p><p><a href="https://homestead.social/tags/foraging" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>foraging</span></a> <a href="https://homestead.social/tags/foragedfood" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>foragedfood</span></a> <a href="https://homestead.social/tags/food" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>food</span></a> <a href="https://homestead.social/tags/sandwich" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>sandwich</span></a> <a href="https://homestead.social/tags/homesteading" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>homesteading</span></a> <a href="https://homestead.social/tags/gardening" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>gardening</span></a> <a href="https://homestead.social/tags/gardeningtips" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>gardeningtips</span></a></p>