Plant Name
|
Botanical Name
|
Flower Color
|
Bloom Period
|
Taste |
Fragrance |
Comments & Hints
|
Angelica |
Angelica achangelica |
Lavender to rose |
Spring-blooming biennial |
Strong anise, sweet, licorice |
|
Candies and compotes |
Anise hyssop
|
Agastache foeniculum |
Lavender |
July to frost |
Strong anise, sweet, licorice |
|
Makes an excellent tea base |
Apple or crabapple
|
Malus spp. |
White to pink |
May |
Slightly floral to sour |
Sweet floral |
Petals may be candied. Seeds are poisonous |
Artichoke |
Cynara scolymus |
Immature head: green |
Fall |
Artichoke |
|
|
Arugula, Rocket |
Eruca vesicaria |
White |
May to frost |
Nutty, smoke, less piquant than leaves |
|
Salad green. Cream-colored petals with delicate burgundy veining are very pretty |
Bachelor's Button |
Centaurea cyanus |
White to pink, red, blue purple |
Early summer |
Grassy |
|
Discard the bitter calyx |
Basil |
Ocimum basilicum |
White to pale pink |
July to frost |
Milder than leaves, spicy |
|
|
Bergamot, bee balm, Oswego tea |
Monarda didyma |
Red, pink, white, lavender |
July to August |
Tea-like, more aromatic than leaves |
Sweet, perfumed |
|
Borage |
Boraga officinalis |
Blue, purple to lavender |
June to July |
Mild cucumber |
|
Use as garnish; may be candied |
Broccoli, cauliflower |
Brassica spp. |
Buds: blue-green; yellow flower, white buds in cauliflower |
June to August |
Broccoli |
|
|
Burnet |
Poterium sanguisorba |
Red |
July to August |
Cucumber |
|
Salad herb. Flowers are red-brown somewhat complex and striking-looking |
Calendula, pot marigold |
Calendula officinalis |
Yellow, gold/orange |
June to August |
Tangy and peppery, sometimes bitter |
|
Ornamental. Dries well. Inexpensive saffron substitute, adds color to rice dishes. Use in scrambled eggs |
Chervil |
Anthriscus cerefolium |
White |
May to June |
Parsley-like, hint of citrus, anise or tarragon |
|
|
Chicory |
Cichorium intybus |
Blue to lavender |
July to frost |
Pleasant, mild-bitter similar to endive |
|
Buds sometimes pickled in place of capers |
Chive |
Allium schoenoprasum |
Lavender, red to purple |
May to June |
Onion, strong |
Onion |
Separate florets to serve |
Chrysanthemum |
Dendrathema x grandiflorum |
Red, yellow, pink, orange, purple, white |
August to October |
Varieties differ, strong to bitter, peppery |
Pungent |
Tea |
Coriander |
Coriandrum sativum |
White |
June to frost |
Like leaf but milder |
Fragrant |
Herb |
Dandelion |
Taraxacum officinale |
Yellow |
May to June; fall |
Sweet and honey-like, sometimes bitter |
|
Eat cooked only |
Daylily |
Hemerocallis fulva |
Tawny orange |
June to July |
Cooked, combination of asparagus/zucchini |
|
All parts are edible |
Carnation, pinks |
Dianthus spp. |
Pink, white and red |
June to August |
Spicy, sweet or clove-like |
Some varieties are spicier |
|
Dill |
Anethum graveolens |
Yellow |
June to frost |
Stronger than leaves |
Dill |
|
English daisy |
Bellis perennis |
White to purple petals |
April to September |
Mild to bitter |
|
Use as garnish or in salads |
Fennel |
Foeniculum vulgare |
Pale yellow |
July to August |
Licorice, milder than leaves, sweet |
|
|
Fuchsia |
Fuchsia spp. |
Purples, red |
Late spring to frost |
|
|
Very vibrant colors, exotic appearance |
Garden chrysanthemum, shungiku |
Chrysanthemum coronarium |
Yellow to white |
August to October |
Mild |
|
Try including immature buds in stir-fry, use whole flowers as garnish |
Garden pea |
Pisum sativum |
White, tinged pink |
May to June |
Raw peas |
|
Vegetable |
Garden sage |
Salvia officinalis |
Blue, purple, white, pink |
May to July |
Flowery sage, slightly musky |
|
Herb |
Garlic chive
|
Allium tuberosum |
White |
August to frost |
Onion, strong |
Onion |
Separate florets to serve |
Gladiolus |
Gladiolus spp. |
Various except true blue |
6-8 weeks after planting |
Bland, lettuce-like |
|
Best stuffed, as a container for dips or spreads, or garnish. Comes in many shades and color combinations |
Hibiscus, China rose, rose-of-China |
Hibiscus rosa-sinensis |
Orange, red or purplish red |
Late summer |
Citrus/cranberry flavor |
|
Subtropical tree but may be grown indoors. Used in many tea flavorings |
Hollyhock |
Alcea rosea |
Various |
July to frost |
Little, slightly bitter |
|
Main value is their color. Best as a garnish or container for dip |
Honeysuckle |
Lonicera spp. |
Usually pale yellow to white |
Spring-summer |
Sweet nectar |
Sweet fragrance |
Makes a delicate garnish. Avoid the toxic berries |
Hyssop |
Hyssopus officinalis |
Blue, pink, white |
July to October |
Bitter; similar to tonic |
|
Used to flavor chartreuse, a liqueur; strong flavor |
Lavender |
Lavandula angustifolia |
Lavender, purple, pink, white |
June to early August |
Highly perfumed, sweet |
Floral |
Used in sugars, custards, honeys, cakes, waters and vinegars. Add petals to salads, baked goods, ice cream. Use in savory dishes as well, or as a garnish |
Lemon |
Citrus limon |
White |
Varies with variety |
Citrus, slightly bitter |
Sweet floral |
Subtropical tree but ma be grown indoors |
Lemon balm |
Melissa officinalis |
Creamy white |
July to August |
Lemony, sweet |
Lemon |
Herb |
Lemon verbena |
Lippia citriodora |
White |
August to September |
|
Lemon |
Dessert, seafood, as a tea |
Lilac |
Syringa vulgaris |
White, pink, purple, lilac |
April to May |
Perfume, slightly bitter to lemony |
Lilac |
Flavor varies markedly from one variety to another. Candies well |
Lovage |
Levisticum officinale |
Yellow, white |
August |
Mild celery |
|
Herb |
Marjoram |
Origanum majorana |
Pale pink |
June to August |
Spicy, sweet |
|
Herb |
Mint |
Mentha spp. |
Lavender, pink to white |
July to September |
Minty, milder than leaves |
Fresh, minty |
Herb |
Mustard |
Brassica spp. |
Yellow |
April to May |
Mustard, hot |
|
Salad garnish. Watch for allergies |
Nasturtium |
Tropaeolum majus |
Red, orange, yellow, white |
July to August |
Watercress-flavored, slightly sweet to peppery |
|
Paler flowers tend to taste milder. Whole or diced in salads. Stuff with mousse, mascarpone or crèma fraîche for an appetizer |
Okra, gumbo |
Abelmoschus aesculentus |
Yellow, red |
Mid-summer to frost |
Mild, sweet and slightly mucilaginous |
|
|
Orange |
Citrus sinensis |
White |
Varies |
Citrus, sweet/strong |
Perfume, sweet |
Subtropical tree but may be grown indoors |
Oregano |
Origanum spp. |
White |
June to August |
Spicy, pungent-like leaves |
|
Herb |
Oxeye daisy |
Chrysanthemum leucanthemum |
White/yellow center |
April to August |
Mild |
|
Use as garnish or in salad |
Pansy, Johnny jump-up |
Viola x wittrockiana, Viola tricolor |
Violet, white, pink, yellow, multi-colored |
May to July |
Mild, tart, slightly wintergreen-flavored |
Sometimes very pronounced sweet fragrance |
Use in fruit dishes, salads, pastas and drinks. Top crackers with cream cheese. May be served whole |
Pineapple sage |
Salvia elegans |
Scarlet |
September |
Pineapple/sage overtones |
|
Herb |
Plum |
Prunus spp. |
Pink to white |
April to May |
Mild, like flower nectar |
Sweet |
Petals candy well. Pits of mature fruit are poisonous |
Radish |
Raphanus sativus |
White, pink, yellow |
One month after planting |
Spicy, sharp and peppery |
|
Over-mature radish root yield blooms |
Red clover |
Trifolium pratense |
Pink, lilac |
June to September |
Hay |
Hay |
Scatter florets on salad |
Redbud |
Cercis canadensis |
Pink |
April |
Beanlike to tart apple |
|
Native tree to Eastern U.S. |
Roman chamomile |
Anthemis nobilis |
White petals; yellow center |
Late June to frost |
Sweet apple flavor |
|
Ragweed sufferers may be allergic to chamomile; drink no more than one cup of tea per day |
Rose |
Rosa spp. |
White, pink, yellow, red, orange |
May to June, September |
Highly perfumed; sweet to bitter |
Rose |
Remove sour petal base. Infuse into water or vinegar. Distill into oil or syrups. Float petals in drinks or strew on desserts |
Rose-of-Sharon |
Hibiscus syriacus |
Red, white, purple, violet |
July to August |
Mild, nutty |
|
Shrub |
Roselle |
Hibiscus sabdariffa |
Red, varies |
|
Tart and fruity |
|
Makes a citrus-like tea |
Rosemary |
Rosmarinus officinalis |
Pale blue, dark blue, pink, white |
Depends on cultivar |
Mild rosemary |
Delicate |
Use raw as a garnish |
Safflower, American safflower, false saffron |
Carthamus tinctorius |
Yellow to deep red |
August |
Bitter flavor |
|
May impart yellow color to cooked foods |
Saffron |
Crocus sativus |
Lavender-purple |
September to October |
Bitter, aromatic |
Complex |
Used for color and flavor. Use only the 3 threadlike stigmas produced per flower |
Scarlet runner bean |
Phaseolus coccineus |
Bright orange to scarlet or white |
July to August |
Raw bean but milder |
|
Vegetable. Flower crunchy; use in salad |
Scented geranium |
Pelargonium spp. |
White, red, pink, purple |
Varies |
Like variety selected, e.g., rose, lemon; varies |
Mild |
Ornamental |
Signet marigold |
Tagetes tenuifolia |
White, gold, yellow, red |
May to September |
Citrus; milder than T. erecta |
|
Ornamental |
Squash or pumpkin |
Cucurbita spp. |
Orange, yellow |
July to August |
Mild, raw squash |
Slightly floral |
Stuff whole blooms, or batter and fry. Slice crosswise for a bizarre and spectacular garnish |
Summer savory |
Satureja hortensis |
Pink |
July to August |
Mildly peppery, spicy |
|
Herb |
Thyme |
Thymus spp. |
Pink, purple, white |
July to August |
Milder than leaves |
|
Herb. Most creeping thymes have little flavor |
Violet |
Viola odorata |
Violet, pink, white |
April to May |
Sweet |
Sweet, floral |
Use as a garnish, in salads. Candies well |
Winter savory |
Satureja montana |
Pale blue to purple |
July to August |
Mildly peppery, spicy |
|
Herb |
Yucca |
Yucca filamentosa |
Creamy white with purple tinge |
July |
Hint of artichoke, slightly bitter |
|
Ornamental |