Start your energy management by foraging for spring onions south of cindersap forest and keeping an eye out for salmonberries on bushes during mid-spring, they're basically free energy right there. Getting the training rod from willy for 25g lets you catch some basic fish and algae, which honestly helps a ton when you're just getting started. Making field snacks is pretty straightforward once you hit foraging level 1, just grab some tree seeds and you're good to go.

I'd stick to about 15-20 crops at first, focusing on parsnips since they're quick and don't drain too much energy. Once you've got some cash flowing, the salad at the stardrop saloon is actually worth the 220g investment, particularly on tough days. The scythe is your best friend early on since it doesn't use any energy, and definitely check those garbage cans behind the saloon when you can - you'd be surprised what people throw away.

Something interesting that helps - hitting a new skill level completely restores your energy for the next day, so maybe plan your bigger projects around when you're close to leveling up. The spa becomes available in summer year 1, which is super helpful for mid-day energy boosts. Definitely try to grab as many salmonberries as you can during spring 15-18, having 60-100 stored up makes life way easier later on. Getting that steel axe upgrade should be a priority too, since it'll save you energy in the long run when chopping wood.

Remember, combining the spring onion mastery bonus with smart foraging basically solves your early energy problems. Things get much smoother once you've got a kitchen and some quality sprinklers set up but until then, these tricks should keep you going.