What could be closer to the nectar of the gods than edible flowers? Flowers are a gift for the spirit. Their beauty, colors and fragrance can transport us to a blissful state. We use them for all the important events of our lives and as gifts of love. So, shouldn’t we eat them to make our meals special, festive and even ceremonial? My answer is a resounding “Yes!” with an “as often as possible.”

Working with edible flowers is a wonderful way to combine gardening, art and cooking—my personal passions. At mealtime, my guests get the benefit of my extensive organic gardens when I serve an omelet of fresh spinach or asparagus. But, the meal truly becomes a work of art when decorated with my fresh cut flowers and herbs. Guests exclaim with delight and even run to get their cameras. It takes only a few moments to create a visual as well as tasty feast, yet it makes people feel special and honored. They say presentation is everything, and, actually, it is! This extra effort shows that you care both about the people you’re serving and about what you’ve created.

The world of edible flowers is vast, varied and readily accessible; however, just because a flower is edible doesn’t mean it will taste good. Some flowers should simply be used as decoration or as petals scattered for a delicate look and taste. Personally, I would rather not chomp down on a whole marigold flower, but taste and smell are very personal. Your taste for particular flowers is something you will want to explore for yourself.

But, I will make some recommendations of my favorites. Nasturtiums top the list with their warm colors and spicy taste. Then, there’s the viola family of flowers—violets and pansies, daisies, chrysanthemums, calendula, cosmos, honeysuckles, dill, chives, dianthus, lavender, roses, basil, bean flowers, sweet and garden pea flowers, day lilies, and squash blossoms—which are easy to grow and tasty, too. This is a generalization, but flowers of all culinary herbs, including sunflowers, dandelions, alyssum, marigolds, berry and fruit flowers, phlox, and most vegetable flowers except the nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes), are also good, edible choices. There are more, but this list should keep your meals and garden spaces well supplied with beauty. Now, here are a few flowers you don’t want to eat: delphinium, larkspur, monkshood, digitalis (i.e. foxglove), poinsettias, euphoria, buttercups, ranunculus, hellebores, daffodils and summer tropical flowers.

But before they can be eaten, the flowers must be grown. And growing them yourself is where the fun truly begins. As I said in my last article on growing culinary herbs [Digging In, May 2008], I’m not a separatist gardener. I believe in mixing it all up both for beauty and charm as well as ease and the overall health of the garden. Diversity is the way of nature; it helps create balance. Edible flowers are, after all, like many of our common annuals, perennials, herbs and vegetables—easy to grow and happy together. Most of the ones I’ve mentioned prefer six or more hours of sun a day and average garden soil. So, don’t think you need to create a special area just for edible flowers. Many are just fine in containers, too, especially nasturtiums, dianthus and herbs, to name only a few. You’re limited only by the size of the container. For instance, if you love sunflowers and you have a sunny deck, simply give them a very large pot and fill the edges with herbs or other smaller flowers.

If you’re growing edible flowers, be sure to grow them organically. Pesticides, herbicides and fungicides are not edible. So, be cautious with florist flowers. Use them only as decoration. Many cut flowers come from other countries, and we have no idea how they’re grown. Also, with store-bought plants, it’s probably best to let them bloom out a bit after you purchase them, as they might have been sprayed. I say all this not to frighten you rather to encourage you to garden on your own. We are blessed, however, with many local organic flower producers; you can find them at our many area tailgate and farmers’ markets [see page 32 for a listing].

There are so many beautiful flowers to play with, eat and enjoy. Imagine a humble grilled cheese sandwich cut in quarters, sprinkled with chive blossoms and set with a tiny mandala of nasturtiums of red, yellow and orange in the center. Suddenly, the humble sandwich has become a celebration of beauty!

Eve Davis is an artist, chef, garden and floral designer, and the chairwoman of Slow Food Asheville. She owns the Hawk and Ivy, a holistic country B&B retreat, with her husband where she teaches classes in gardening, floral design and cooking. To have Eve create a workshop tailored to your group (minimum of five) or for questions, contact her at 828-626-3486, www.hawkandivy.com or info@hawkandivy.com.

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