Why our edible flowers are worth the wait
Published: 4th Mar 2017
I could walk into a florist or supermarket today and buy a whole range of cut flowers for the vase - roses, dahlias, gypsophila and sunflowers to name a few. We are so used to buying what we want, when we want it that waiting for something to become available can be frustrating. But in the case of our edible flowers they are definitely worth the wait. The flowers I've mentioned here all happen to be edible flowers too but you definitely wouldn't want to eat them. Here's why...
Flowers sold out of season will most likely have been produced abroad, usually Africa (mostly Kenya), Colombia or the Netherlands as part of a massive multi-billion pound industry. When they reach our shops they have racked up thousands of air miles and used up huge amounts of resources, including water and electricity from the artificial and mechanised environment they have been grown and stored in. Most importantly these flowers will have been treated with chemical fertilisers, pesticides and preservatives (including antibiotics) making them completely unsafe as food products. Not to mention that they will not have had to meet any food hygiene standards because they were never meant to be eaten.
Safe to eat edible flowers
Seasonal, organically grown edible flowers like ours do not have such a sad story and this is why they are worth the wait. Because our flowers are grown with our local climate, not in artificial environments, there is a wonderful variation in availability throughout the year and the bees and other vital pollinators get to benefit from them too. There are no air miles involved at all and certainly no chemical pesticides or preservatives! The Flower Deli has been approved by the local authority public safety department to sell flowers as food and we grow, pick and pack them to the required standards.
I love the way that the seasons change our Flower Deli garden, it keeps things interesting. In the spring we'll have the very welcome primroses, pansies, daisies and tulips, early summer brings forget-me-nots, dianthus, calendula and chives. Then to join them come the roses, borage, cornflowers and nasturtiums - and I'm naming only a few here!
Our spring 2017 season will begin very soon. If you would like to know when our edible flowers are available to buy, please sign up to our newsletter as the bottom of the screen.