March

The spring finally starts to make its presence felt and the first noticeable change to the scenery is the white flowering trees in the mountains; these are wild magnolias (Kobushi) and although you have to hike to get close to them, they have a delicate sweet fragrance.
Edible plants begin to appear, like mugwort (Yomogi) and butterbur (Fuki), and most people in Miyama will pick some from their garden for dinner – these edible wild plants are the food of the month and when fried as Tempura they are delicious.
They are also said to clean the body and have many health benefits.
Lots of the birds start singing their spring songs in March and it brings an air of excitement after the cold quiet winter.