Inside The New York Botanical Garden

Archive: April 9, 2012

Florid Appetizers

Posted in Exhibitions, Gardening Tips on April 9 2012, by Matt Newman

Your vanity garden is scarcely the first place you look for salad toppings. Instead, most turn to the leafy standbys–lettuce, cabbage, kale, spinach. Throw in a few slices of zucchini or a handful of cherry tomatoes, maybe sprinkle the bowl with a few herbs to push the salad toward “exotic.” But what if I told you that eating the florid, elegant blooms that might otherwise end up in a vase is as natural as dousing your Caesar with dressing?

I’m not saying you should go right out and make a trial-and-error buffet of your window planter. There are only certain flowers that you would have any desire to eat, as many are poisonous or taste beyond awful. And that’s all the disclaimer I can give: don’t eat anything unless it is properly identified.

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Morning Eye Candy: Doors are Open

Posted in Around the Garden, Photography on April 9 2012, by Matt Newman

Sorry we’re late with this one–it’s been a hectic weekend for some of us. But with the kids escaping from school for their spring break, it means today is a rare open Monday at the NYBG! Get here while the sun is high.

Delphinium Pacific Giant ‘Blue Bird’ — Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen