I knew my job as Garden Editor at Mother Earth News was about to end. The magazine had been sold, and the offices were moving out of state. I had no idea I was about to learn gardening lessons that would teach me a lot about life. What should I do now? I was driving the last stretch of road before I reached my rural home when it came to me. “I can’t compete with all the how-to garden magazines out…

No one is born an expert—in foraging for wild foods or anything else. We learn by doing, and along the way we make mistakes. Here are five life lessons Ellen Zachos learned from foraging for wild foods.

Garden failure is a harsh reality. But every garden failure offers a chance to learn, to grow, and to become a better gardener.