It is perennial. Mine is 10 yrs old, about 20 plants. But there is a lot of stalk removing in the next years.

Mine's come back yearly for 5 years or so. It will also self-sow aggressively if you don't remove the flower spikes, which will come back several times after cutting. The flowers are small, though numerous (they look a little like a ripening grain), and so can be easy to overlook.

Sorrel is very hardy and will come back even in zone 2. It is also one of the first to start growing in spring. Hence, the existence of East European soups built around sorrel, and the previous year's potatoes, as a treat in the springtime.

They are delicious, and really the only reason to have sorrel. I make sorrel soup for Thanksgiving also, but the late leaves are not as tasty as the early ones. My daughter complains that in early spring we eat only sorrel soup and omelets with various winter greens.

Thanks for all the feedback

Yes, must be very hardy. Sorrel and parsley were what kept me going all summer during the hot drought. When most of my lettuce would not grow and my mustards were bug eaten I always had those 2.

But when does sorrel make seeds?

in summer, starting next year.

Okay guys, I need a recipe or two, please. I have this stuff growing and have not used it yet. I have lots of leaves right now....didn't think I could use them until Spring. Thanks!

Sorrel soup:

in 2 quarts of good stock, cook 1 lb of peeled baking potatoes and one peeled onion until tender. Add seasonings to taste (I add salt and chili).

Stem the sorrel leaves (two handfuls) and make sure everyone is at the table because things must proceed fast from this point on. Drop two cups of the stock mixture in the blender, and half the leaves. Blend IMMEDIATELY. If you do it right, the soup will be bright green, with no discernible sorrel bits. If you do it wrong, waiting until the leaves change color, the soup will be somewhat gray and flecked with cooked sorrel bits.

Pour in a bowl, repeat with the rest of the soup. Serve immediately, IMHO best with croutons (old bread diced and baked in the oven until golden) and olive oil. If you use wax potatoes, they are gluey enough that they may wreck the blender. It has happened to me.

Tomato corn chowder with sorrel

In summer, collect 1.5 lbs tomatoes, various vegetables that would not make a meal by themselves (typically, one zucchini, one eggplant, a handful string beans), one onion, two corn ears, handful of sorrel leaves, stemmed. Fry the onion in oil until soft, then dump all the chopped vegetables in the pot and cook until it looks like a chowder. Add seasonings to taste.

I like the tiny leaves that come up in fall. When winter comes, though, I resign myself to parting with such sweet sorrel.