Flowers are one of the most beautiful elements of our wild landscapes, bringing color and fragrance through the seasons.
Some don’t realize that many of these flower species are 100% edible, and can be incorporated into our diets in creative ways.
If you’re just starting your journey into foraging, let me introduce you to an oft-overlooked part of nature’s wild kitchen.
10 Surprising Edible Flowers to Forage & Enjoy
Whether you want a unique addition to your baking or a pretty garnish for salads, these ten edible flowers are some of the best and easiest species for beginner foragers to try.
1. Violets (Viola sororia)
Depending on where you live, wild violets might be the first color you see in early spring. Those small splashes of purple are a sign that winter is finally over.
While you admire their color, why not pick a handful and experiment with some early spring foraging recipes?
Violets are one of the most prominent edible wildflowers, and they grow everywhere in the US if the soil conditions are right. Look for them in areas with moist soil and plenty of shade.
Violet flowers can be used to infuse liqueurs, made into jellies, crystallized into sugar, and used to decorate cakes and other desserts. They have a delicate, floral taste with undertones of wild berries.
While the heart-shaped leaves can resemble other species, violets do not have any notable toxic lookalikes.
2. Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)
The Japanese Honeysuckle is another fundamental edible flower that any forager should learn about.
This invasive climbing vine is a pain for homeowners, but a prize for foragers due to the edible and medicinal properties of its blossoms.
Japanese honeysuckle is a woody vine with glossy green leaves. Its yellow and white flowers grow in a tubular shape, around 1 or 2 inches long, and appear in clusters. They bloom in late spring and early summer.
The flowers are completely edible and filled with sweet floral nectar. They can be added to salads, dried, and made into tea, and the nectar can be turned into syrup or used to infuse honey.
There are several species of edible honeysuckle in the US, including natives, but not all of them are edible. Since the Japanese honeysuckle is so invasive and wide-spreading, picking many flowers will be a net positive for local ecosystems.
Unlike the flowers, Japanese honeysuckle berries are toxic. You should only harvest and use the flowers of this plant.
3. Borage (Borago officinalis)
You might recognize this next edible flower from your grandmother’s garden.
While borage is a staple herb in some gardens, it also grows wild in woodlands and pastures.
If you see these gangly green plants with their star-shaped blue flowers and fuzzy stalks and stems, you’ve stumbled on a useful ingredient.
Borage is an annual flowering plant, and its blossoms appear in the summer months. Both the flowers and stems are edible.
Borage flowers are delicious – to me, they taste like cucumbers only stronger and more concentrated. Because of their appearance and taste, they make a perfect addition to a show-stopping salad.
Some also use them in teas and tinctures.
This plant is a vigorous self-seeder, so if you find a local patch of wild borage you should be able to use it as a foraging patch year after year.
4. Elderflower (Sambucus canadensis)
Elderberries are well known for their medicinal properties, but beginner foragers should take any opportunity to forage this plant’s amazing flowers.
The American elderberry is a small tree or shrub that grows best in damp areas, including near marshes, streams, and ditches.
In late spring and early summer, it produces enormous clusters of tiny fragrant flowers, followed by dark purple edible droops later in the season.
Elderflowers are creamy white and have a mild sweet flavor. They work beautifully in beverages – particularly teas, cordials, lemonades, liqueurs, and wine. You can also incorporate them into baked goods, jams, and jellies.
Studies have found that elderflowers may have anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties and that, like elderberries, they could effectively reduce cold and flu symptoms.
The American elderberry is dispersed widely across the country. According to the North Carolina State Extension, it grows wild in 45 states, so keep your eyes peeled!
5. Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
The black locust is a large flowering tree native to the southeastern US that can grows across the country and is even invasive in some regions.
It grows in a variety of soil types and environments and produces pinnate compound leaves and drooping clusters of white flowers that decorate its branches in late spring to early summer.
Black locust flowers offer more than just ornamental value. These blossoms are completely edible and have a pea-like, slightly floral flavor. They can be eaten fresh from the tree or used in tea, cordials, salads, and flower fritters.
Keep in mind that black locust blossoms have a short window for harvesting. They are best eaten when the flowers are fully opened and before they are dried out and discolored.
You can identify black locust blossoms by their appearance, which looks very like pea blossoms, and their rich, sweet spring fragrance which smells similar to jasmine.
6. Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
If you’re new to foraging, dandelion should be at the top of your to-do list! It grows virtually everywhere, is incredibly easy to identify, and every part of the plant is edible.
The dandelion is naturalized in every part of the US and grows in a huge range of climates and soil conditions.
It has lance-shaped leaves that grow in a rosette, and bright yellow, almost fuzzy-looking flowers.
Both dandelion flowers and flower buds can be used in wild recipes.
In spring, gather the flowers and add them to baked goods, use the petals as a garnish, or turn them into dandelion wine and honey. The buds can be pickled and used as a substitute for capers.
Dandelion flowers and buds can also be made into a tincture to extract their medicinal properties.
Dandelions contain numerous antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, and have historically been used to treat inflammation and gastrointestinal issues, among others.
7. Redbud Flowers (Cercis canadensis)
Many gardeners in the eastern US know the beauty of the eastern redbud tree, which is smothered in masses of gorgeous pink and magenta flowers in early spring.
Not everyone is aware that these beautiful redbud flowers are also edible.
While they are a popular cultivated tree, redbuds can often be found growing wild in undisturbed soil in woodlands, woodland edges, and along streams and bluffs according to the Penn State Extension.
You’ll recognize the eastern redbud by its dark bark and pea-like bright pink flowers that cling to its delicate branches. The tree has no toxic lookalikes.
The crisp texture of redbud flowers makes them an excellent addition to salads, but they can also be sauteed and added to stir-fries. Some foragers use them as a pretty garnish for baking and desserts.
8. Lilac (Syringa vulgaris)
You may be hesitant to add lilac flowers to your pantry since they look and smell so beautiful on the tree. But you’ll be missing out!
There are hundreds of lilac cultivars producing many different shades of pink and purple (and even white) flowers, and every single one is edible.
Common lilac grows best in cool climates, so it is usually easier to find in cultivated gardens than out in the wild. In spring these small trees and bushes produce large clusters of tiny pink and purple flowers.
Lilac is a lovely, delicate flavor that works best in sweet recipes.
The most popular ways to use lilac in the kitchen include lilac-infused water, which can be turned into jelly, tea, and more beverages, and lilac-infused sugar which can be used to make amazing ice cream, sherbert, and other desserts.
Lilac wine is also a popular choice.
9. Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus)
Many gardeners use nasturtium plants to add color to their gardens and to keep pests at bay. But their orange, red, and yellow flowers are perfectly edible and add a unique element to many dishes.
Of all the edible flowers I’ve tried, I find nasturtiums to be some of the most useful.
Nasturtium flowers have a strong, peppery taste that works best with savory recipes. Make sure to pick them before the hottest period of summer.
Use them in salads, on pizza and pasta dishes, or turn them into vinegar. More experimental cooks can also try them in sweet recipes.
Nasturtiums have long escaped cultivation to grow wild in rural and urban areas, thriving in sunny and warm locations.
You can recognize them by their trailing, vine-like growth habit, circular dark green leaves that look like upright lily pads, and of course, their vividly colored flowers.
10. Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
What list of edible flowers is complete without the mighty sunflower?
Sunflowers are one of the most popular and commercially viable edible flowers in the world, and since they grow widely even beyond cultivation, it’s a must-try for foragers too.
If you’re lucky enough to find sunflowers in the wild, you can use them in the same way you would home-cultivated sunflowers.
Of course, this means harvesting the many seeds from the head of the flower and consuming them as a snack or pressing them for oil.
Golden sunflower petals and their leaves and flower bulbs are fully edible too!
The petals can be used as a garnish or dried and used as a seasoning, leaves can be used in salad or boiled and sauteed, and the buds can also be steamed, boiled, and pickled.
Important Disclaimer: Safety and Responsibility in Foraging
Flower foraging is a fun and fairly easy pastime, but you should still take precautions before gathering and consuming wildflowers.
You need to research further to ensure you don’t confuse them with toxic lookalikes.
If you aren’t 100% confident in identifying an edible species, please don’t pick them!
Responsible foraging also means learning about your local ecosystems, so you don’t harvest plants in ways that can be damaging to yourself or your environment.
Avoid foraging in areas that are sprayed with pesticides or are close to hazardous human activities (such as farming and industrial waste), and leave enough flowers behind for local wildlife, reproduction, and other foragers.
