Take A Walk On The Wild Side

Wildflowers aren't relegated to the countryside. Here's how to start your own thriving wildflower garden and how to enjoy the flavor they can bring to your meals

By Jeff Schnaufer
CTW Features

Nasturtiums aren't just beautiful – they're edible too. Image courtesy stock.xchng

When most people think of enjoying wildflowers, they hop in the car and take a drive to the countryside or mountains.

But here's another thought to chew on: Try enjoying wildflowers at your dinner table.

"People can grow flowers to eat," says Cindy Meredith, a member of the Herb Association of Texas who runs the Herb Cottage outside of Hallettsville. "There’s all kinds of cool stuff about edible flowers."

From salads to side dishes, dessert toppings to teas, the wild produces a variety of plants, weeds and flowers that can be grown in your yard, experts say. Some of these, like roses, are already fixtures in most American yards, while others may be raised from seeds found at a local seed store, nursery or an online specialty store.

"Any so-called "traditional" flower is simply a flower that was wild somewhere else, was then taken to a new place and cultivated, and hence, no longer wild. There are thus many variations of the wild flower garden," says Christopher Nyerges of Los Angeles, co-founder of the School of Self-Reliance and author of “Guide to Wild Foods and Useful Plants” (Chicago Review Press, 1999) and “Wild Greens and Salads” (Stackpole Books, 1982). "The wild flower garden attempts to replicate nature in the forest or field."

In addition to making your yard more eco-friendly, growing wildflowers and other native edible plants can add beauty and taste to your household menu.

"I really like Nasturtium with its brilliant colors, and it's entirely edible," says Nyerges. "Also I like Peruvian mint, and Jerusalem artichoke, and Tradescantia and many cacti, and lots of plants that most folks call weeds. Some are native, many are not. I grow all of these, or rather, I allow them to grow in my yard."

Nasturtium is a shade-loving, sprawling vine that is easy to grow in most gardens and is native to the West Coast. Here are a few of Nyerges' recipes for Nasturtium:

–Chop the leaves, mix with cream cheese and use as sandwich spread. –Put the fresh seeds into raw apple cider vinegar for about 2 weeks. Use like capers. –Add flowers to salads as you wish. –Chop leaves, add to milk base, and brew a delicious soup.

Jerusalem artichoke is a sunflower that is native to the Eastern United States, says Nyerges. It does not produce seed, but instead reproduces by underground tubers. These tubers are edible – raw or cooked.

"They are very much like carrots with no carotene," says Nyerges, "and they can be used raw in salads like jicama, or used in the same way you’d use potatoes."

Peruvian mint, Nyerges says, is a succulent vining groundcover with small lavender flowers. It emits a lovely fragrance if you walk on it. To make it into a tea, simply put a few leaves in your cup or pot, add hot water, and drink when ready. Sweeten as desired.

To add a little style to your drinks, Meredith suggests Borage, with its beautiful, edible blue petals. People freeze the flower in an ice cube and use it in a glass," she says. "You have a little flower floating around in there."

Desserts can also appeal more to the eye (and palate) with the help of a few flowers. Take violets and pansies, for instance. "You take a little paint brush and mix up an egg white," says Meredith. "Then you paint the egg white on the flower with the paint brush. Then you take super fine sugar and sprinkle the sugar on the flower with the egg white. The egg white makes the sugar stick. It dries with the shape of the flower. And it's used for cake decorations."

Or try decorating your cake with America's favorite flower: the rose. "Rose petals are edible," says Meredith. "You have to pull the petals out of the flower. Those are used in salads or cakes. You can line the bottom of a cake pan with rose petals. And then you pour the batter in. After you bake it, you turn the cake out of the cake pan and the rose petals are on top. It's beautiful."

Sound's just wild enough to work.

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