edible flowers and a toddler...

[kama'aina mama]

I am starting with vegetable gardening and a few flowers as well. I am doing a fair ammount of salad greens and a friend of mine suggested I plant nasturtium (creative spelling) since they are pretty in the garden plus pretty and yummy in salads.

My concern: Will giving my 17 month old flowers to eat on her plate at dinner time lead her to start nibbling on other flowers in the garden? Does seeing vegetables come from your yard into your house tend to lead toddlers to nibble on other plants?

[DebraBaker]

When you're choosing your flowering plants try not to pick plants/flowers that are clearly poisonous (foxgloves come to mind) until she's old enough to discern edible from non-edible flowers.

Another tip: violas are edible. We get them growing wild in our lawn and flowerbeds (we don't use chemicals and I don't have the heart to weed them out of our flowerbeds.) I put them in salads and freeze them in our ice cube trays. (a very elegant glass of ice water)

DB

[Chanley]

Other edible flowers are borage flowers. These are pretty in ice cubes too.


I would strongly reccomend that you do not eat them in the garden with her. I think that as long as you bring them in and THEN serve them, your child will not be as likely to forage in the garden.

There are so many poisonous plants that we would go nuts trying to garden with only edible plants. The leaves of the tomato plant are lethal as are eggplant and a host of other things.

A good rule of thumb with young children I think is to teach them that we take stuff from the garden in the house and wash it, THEN eat it. If this is done then I think they are less likely to go about eating misc. stuff in the garden.

Ohh and PLEASE DO NOT EAT FLOWERS FROM A COMMERCIAL NURSERY!!!!!!!!

DO not buy plants, set them out then eat the flowers. you would not believe the JUNK they spray on bedding plants. Just from nursery work I can tell you they spray on pansies: fungicide (kills fungus), growth retardant (to keep them from blooming too soon so the foliage will get fuller) and nasty synthetic fertilizers.

So please only eat edible flowers that you grow from seed.

ok enough from me!!!

[kama'aina mama]

Thank you for the great input. I keep a pretty close eye on her in the yard, but it is impossible to keep everything out of her mouth at all times. I will make sure there is nothing highly poisonous in the yard and won't snack in the yard. Hhmmm.. looks like another trip to the seed store!

[levar]

Just wanted to add, if you organic garden, that roses, pansies, and marigolds are all very tastey too. So much so we have trouble with our DOG not our son.

~Sandie

[Milo]

I never thought about the difference between eating things "in" your garden and "from" your garden, in the house.....I thought I was doing good to teach them to clean the dirt of the carrots before eating them. My oldest BIL taught me how to eat nasturtiums when I was about 7 - I always plant them now.

The flowers (and every other part, too) of chives are pretty and edible too.