Is there an innate cellular memory in all of us that allows us to instinctively know which flowers are just there to look pretty and which ones are edible? We anxiously observe our toddler happily gnawing on a camellia bud, “No, don’t eat that!” but she just smiles back at us oblivious to our cautionary cry, until we pry it out of her hands and scoop the chewed dribbly petals out of her mouth. Frantically we search the internet…are camellia flowers poisonous? I don’t think so…I hope not. But ofcourse…Camellia sinensis is known as the tea plant, you can make black tea from the leaves. The dried flowers of Camellia japonica are cooked and used as a vegetable or mixed with gelatinous-rice to make a Japanese food called “mochi”. Was our toddler our guinea pig? She seems to know what is edible, as on another occasion she is caught chewing on a fresh shoot of black bamboo Phyllostachys nigra; boiling the shoot pieces for ten minutes will greatly soften the texture then can be added straight to a meal, or pan fried.
In saying this I am not proclaiming to eat a flower because your intuition tells you it is okay, on the contrary, never eat a plant or flowers unless you have positively identified it as an edible flower and even an otherwise edible flower can be poisonous if it has been sprayed with pesticides. While doing bush regeneration I had to explain this to an elderly lady who was foraging in the park for brassica. I showed her what areas were safe from pesticides.
There are many videos, books and blogs on harvesting edible flowers, but make sure you triple check your sources as there is a lot of misinformation out there and this is something you do not want to get wrong. Also, make sure you are mindful when harvesting flowers, don’t take too much that you will end up wasting, don’t be greedy…as bees, bugs and birds also like flowers and they have an important role to play in our ecosystem.
At Renewed Spirit we have recently sourced some wonderful products from Sow n Sow, based in Maleny QLD – A Gift Of Seeds are a wonderful selection of flowers some edible, as in Sow n Sow Culinary Flowers. Edible flowers that taste pretty! They come in a beautifully designed packet with original illustrations by Melbourne artist Daniella Germain and printed on 100% post consumer waste recycled card. A great gift (or card replacement), that will keep giving.
