I often wonder if flowers from my gardens are edible, as I’m sure many others do. And to my surprise, many of the blooms from the vegetables, herbs, and flowers are not only OK to eat, but they taste delicious and add a pop of color to our meals. So, today I’ll share a list of flowers you can eat.
IMPORTANT! NEVER eat any flower you are not 100% sure is OK to eat. Do your due diligence before attempting to ingest any flower, no matter how appealing it is.
Books About Edible Flowers
Here are a couple of books to study if you want to explore edible flowers.
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How To Use Edible Flowers
While you can always eat the flowers raw, as soon as you pick them, there are many ways to use edible flowers. Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
- add them to fresh salads (nasturtium, pansy, cucumber, bee balm, dandelion, rose)
- make tea (hibiscus, mint, linden, elder flowers, chamomile, etc.)
- add to cooked food as a spice (sage mustard, nasturtium)
- decorate cakes and desserts (rose, Johnny jump up, honeysuckle, lavender, violets, clover, and more)
- make flavored oils and vinegars (thyme, oregano, calendula, peppermint, sage, rosemary, etc.)
- use them in flavored water (rose, lilac, lavender, hibiscus, and more) and other refreshing drinks
- make pretty ice cubes
- pickle them (magnolia, nasturtium, garlic chives)
- stuff them (zucchini blossoms, lilies, tulips)
- make popsicles (pansies are perfect for this!)
- add them to sauces (rosemary, thyme, chives, oregano, etc.)
- make candied petals (roses)
As you can see, edible flowers can be used in savory dishes, desserts, ice creams, green salads, fruit salads, salad dressings, and as a garnish for soups. Here’s a list of 13 recipes using edible flowers.
Flowers You Can Eat
There's so much fun getting to know what flowers are edible, and how to use them in your everyday meals! Here are just a few to give you an idea.
If your broccoli plant beginning to bolt and small, bright yellow flowers are beginning to pop up? Are broccoli flowers edible? Yes, and here's how to use them.
If you got too busy and all of a sudden realized your basil plants have all bloomed, you'll love the ideas below on how to use basil flowers.
Are rosemary flowers edible? Absolutely! They're also quite delicious. From tea to recipes to salads, rosemary blossoms can liven up your home and table.
Are oregano flowers edible? You bet they are! They are great on pizza, infused in oil, steeped in tea, and added to your homemade potpourri. Learn more below.
If you have chives growing in your garden, you might have wondered: are chive flowers edible? Yes, they are: here's how to use these beautiful purple flowers.
List Of Edible Flowers
The edible flowers in the list below include a bit of every flavor and taste:
- sweet flavor
- earthy flavor
- minty flavor
- herbal flavor
- grassy flavor
- peppery flavor
- spicy taste
- floral taste
- bitter taste
My list of edible flowers includes:
- flowers with small and larger petals
- white flowers
- red flowers
- small flowers
- big flowers
Which of the popular edible flowers below did you try?
- Anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
- Apple blossoms (Malus domestica)
- Arugula blooms (Eruca sativa)
- Basil flowers (Ocimum basilicum) – here are 10 ways to use basil flowers
- Bergamot flowers (Citrus bergamia)
- Borage flowers (Borago officinalis) – learn how to grow borage
- Carnation petals (dianthus caryophyllus)
- Chamomile flowers (Matricaria chamomilla)
- Chervil (Anthriscus cerefolium) – here’s how to grow chervil
- Chicory flowers (Cichorium intybus)
- Chinese hibiscus (hibiscus rosa-Sinensis)
- Chrysanthemum
- Citrus Blossoms
- Common sage – growing sage guide
- Common violet
- Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus)
- Daisy (Bellis perennis)
- Dandelion flowers (Taraxacum)
- Daylily (Hemerocallis)
- Elderflower (Sambucus)
- Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
- French marigold (Tagetes patula)
- Garden sorrel (Rumex acetosa)
- Geranium (Pelargonium)
- Honeysuckle (Lonicera)
- Indian cress (Tropaeolum majus)
- Johnny jump-ups (Viola tricolor)
- Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) – learn about different types of lavender and their uses
- Lemon verbena (Aloysia citrodora)
- Lilac (Syringa vulgaris)
- Linden (Tilia flores)
- Lovage (Levisticum officinale)
- Mint (Mentha)
- Nasturtium flowers (Tropaeolum) – tips for growing and using nasturtiums
- Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)
- Pansies (Viola tricolor var. hortensis)
- Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata)
- Pineapple sage (Salvia elegans)
- Pot marigold (calendula officinalis) – learn how to grow marigolds
- Purslane flowers (Portulaca oleracea)
- Radish flowers (or, you can let one radish not only bloom, but set seeds. The radish seed pods are delicious!)
- Red clover (Trifolium pratense)
- Rose petals
- Rosemary flowers – here are 10 creative ways to use rosemary flowers
- Starflower (Trientalis borealis)
- Sunflower (Helianthus)
- Thyme flowers (Thymus vulgaris)
- Tulip petals (Tulipa)
- Woodruff (Galium odoratum)
- Zucchini and squash blossoms
These flowers you can eat come in many colors too: from bright and bold, to pale and delicate. I love orange and yellow flowers, such as calendula and nasturtiums (as well as yellow petals of dandelions and sunflowers), but blue flowers and lavender flowers are amazing too (here are 7 culinary lavender varieties to try)! It’s really hard to pick favorites, as each blossom has its own beauty and special flavor.
Did you know you can also use dried edible flowers?
I hope you’ll try at least a few of these flowers. If you have a favorite, I’d love to hear about it (leave a comment 🙂
Adriana Copaceanu is a passionate nature lover living in the country on her dream property where she grows vegetables, lavender, and wildflowers that she shares with the wildlife they attract. When she's not in the garden, she loves spending time with her chickens and planning her next nature project. Check out her books below:
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