Edible spring flowers and how to use them
And troubleshooting yellow leaves in Hügelkultur beds
Hi, guys!
Spring has certainly sprung around here, and I have a pollen-covered car to prove it. If you have flowers and flowering trees brightening up your garden — they can also brighten up your meals.
A few words of caution:
Never eat anything you forage unless you are ONE HUNDRED PERCENT certain of what it is. Some plants have toxic lookalikes, especially early in the season. For example, wild onions can be mistaken for either toxic lilies or death Camus, which, well, is self-explanatory. Do your own research, compare photos to plants, etc.
Never eat anything that has been treated with pesticides or herbicides — or that has been growing near plants or in a lawn that has.
Never eat anything that has been growing near a road, where it might have been exposed to car exhaust fumes, dog urine or other pollutants.
Only the flowers of the following plants are edible; do not eat their stamens, pistils, roots, leaves or other plant parts, which may be toxic.
Select only healthy flowers that have not wilted, and rinse well before using.
As with any new food, introduce flowers gradually to ensure you aren’t allergic.
Edible flowers:
WILD (NOT cultivated) VIOLETS can be candied or used in salads, jellies and syrups. Avoid yellow ones, which contain saponins that impart a bitter flavor and can upset your stomach.
COMMON LILACS (NOT Persian Lilac or Chinaberry bush) can be used to make fragrant syrups, teas, sugars, lemonades and desserts.
SAUCER MAGNOLIA petals taste like ginger, so they can be used as a ginger substitute in recipes. Or add them fresh or pickled to salads, or dry and add to tea.
EASTERN REDBUD TREE BLOSSOMS can be made into jelly or tea, or used in salads or as a garnish.
CHERRY BLOSSOMS can be brewed into tea, dried, crumbled and baked into desserts, pickled (Japanese method, above), used in drinks or as garnishes, or dried, crushed and mixed with salt for use in seafood recipes.
Methods:
TEA: Steep one part fresh petals in one part boiling water and allow to sit for 4-6 hours or dry petals, then steep as you would when making conventional tea.
CANDY: Brush both sides of the petals with whisked egg whites, sprinkle with superfine sugar and allow to dry.
PICKLING, TWO WAYS:
Conventional method: Add one cup of fresh petals to two cups of simmered white vinegar (sugar and salt, to taste, are optional), cover, allow to sit for 10 days, then strain and store.
Japanese method (for cherry blossoms): Place petals in a glass jar or storage container, toss with a sprinkling of sea salt and refrigerate for three days. Rinse, then place into a clean container and cover with plum vinegar (or rice vinegar, if you can’t find plum); cover and refrigerate for 3 more days. Taste; if they are still bitter, refrigerate longer. The blossoms will have significantly shrunk, but their flavor will have concentrated, so a little will go a long way.
JUST ONE WEEK LEFT TO ENTER OUR GARDEN POETRY “CONTEST”
Since 2009, I’ve been asking gardeners to dig deep into their poetic selves, first at Newsday in New York and now here at the Weekly Dirt. Every year, I’m blown away by the talent and effort you guys put forth.
This year, I’ve decided to broaden the theme to anything gardening-related.
Your entry can rhyme or not; be free verse, sonnet, limerick or slam; a poignant reflection on butterflies as a metaphor for your life or a humorous account — whatever moves you when you put pen to paper (or strike those keys).
There’s just one rule: Entries must be a maximum of seven lines. Longer poems will not be considered.
A selection of the best submissions will be published here in The Weekly Dirt, and my absolute favorite will receive some small gardening surprises in the mail, including a signed copy of the newly published book, “Heart Blossoms: A Bed of Blooming Verses,” written by our very own Weekly Dirt Poetry Contest veteran Terri Allen Donahue.
Email your poem, along with your full name and complete mailing address (only your name and hometown will be published), to jessica@jessicadamiano.com with “Garden Poetry” in the subject line.
Submissions must be received by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, May 11, 2025.
📬 Ask Jessica
DEAR JESSICA: I read your article on Hügelkultur beds and wanted to reach out as a newbie gardener. We started our garden about a month ago in a mostly sunny spot with some afternoon shade. We built our bed using logs, fresh-cut branches and leaves from Japanese plum and oak trees, pine needles, grass clippings and composted Black Kow manure, and topped it all with Black Gold organic soil.
We sowed seeds directly into the bed on March 31 (except for an Everglades tomato transplant). I added earthworm castings a week ago. We water every other day based on soil moisture but don’t know how to aim for the 1 1/2 inches per week the plants require.
Despite this, most plants (spinach, arugula, lettuce, kale, romaine, red pepper, cucumber, carrots, basil, chives, calendula, alyssum, tomato) show signs of distress—yellowing, wilting, or no growth. A plant ID app flags several as “sick.”
I’m unsure if the issue is soil layering, nutrients, timing, or location. We also had a fire ant infestation early on but treated it with organic baits. I’ve done a lot of research, but there’s still so much I don’t know. Do you have any suggestions? —Pamela Mattox, Brandon, Florida
DEAR PAMELA: I can’t be 100 percent certain what is going on, but you should first apply fertilizer. Hügelkultur beds are self-fertilizing when their ingredients decompose, but that won’t happen until next year. In addition, during their first year, the decomposing logs and plant matter will actually deplete the bed of nitrogen. Yellowing is often a sign of nutrient deficiency.
Yes, it’s true that incorporating amendments like compost and earthworm castings into the soil is the most beneficial way to get those nutrients to plants, but top dressing can also help. However, that takes time, so use an actual balanced fertilizer until at least next year.
Next, inspect for insects on plants, including under leaves.
In addition, plants like spinach, arugula, lettuce and kale are cool-season plants that may struggle if temperatures are above 70 degrees, especially in full sun.
Another issue could be over- or under-watering. I’m not sure how you’re watering, but to gauge the amount applied, you can set a tuna can in the bed, either under a portion of your soaker hose, in the path of your sprinkler or under your watering can, and see how much accumulates during a watering session, then divide or multiply to achieve the desired amount per week. Also, avoid watering in the evening, as it will keep plants moist overnight and encourage mold, mildew and fungal diseases to take hold. The best time to water is early in the morning.
There’s also a possibility that if you used too many, the pine needles have lowered your soil’s pH below the acceptable range for those plants, but that wouldn’t likely cause issues until they’ve sufficiently broken down.
Good luck!
Got a gardening question? Ask it here.
👏 Sunday shoutout
Margaret Hanan of Rockville Centre, New York, sent this photo of her pansies. “I have always had a problem with squirrels digging them up. This year, I put plastic forks around the inside of the pots to help keep them away. Now it looks like there is a white picket fence inside the pots!” she writes.
I once received hate mail from animal lovers after suggesting using plastic forks around the garden to keep cats from using beds as litter boxes. I’m an animal lover, too, and can assure you the forks are not likely to cause injuries.
Aside, perhaps, from animals intent on self-harm, who might deliberately throw themselves onto the forks, most will paw at unknown objects to ascertain them and avoid those they don’t understand. The only concern, however, would be for unattended small children.
Send in your photo, and you could be featured next (bonus points if you’re in the picture!)
💡 If you do one thing this week…
Fertilize cabbage, lettuce, spinach and other cool-season vegetables now.
📰This week in my Associated Press gardening column
I write a weekly gardening column for the AP, so you might have seen my byline in your local paper (or news website) — wherever in the world you happen to be. In case you miss it, I’ll post the most recent here every week.
THIS WEEK: The secret to a refreshing cocktail or mocktail might be growing in the garden
LAST WEEK: Why oaks are the best trees to plant on Arbor Day or any day
BEFORE THAT: Plant once, harvest for decades: Here’s how to grow asparagus
ONE MORE: Every yard makes a difference. Native-plant champion Doug Tallamy’s got a new book explaining how
ALSO: Oaks, asters and 6 other ‘keystone’ native species to plant for biodiversity, with Doug Tallamy
You can read all my AP gardening columns here.
📚📺🎵 Random things I enjoyed this week
😪 I spent much of the week laying on the couch in a desperate attempt to reverse the effects of sleep deprivation and jet lag compounded by a lingering finger infection. This does not belong under a header of things I enjoyed, but that was my week.
📺 I started watching Hacks and nearly finished the first two seasons (see above). The series follows an aging Las Vegas-headlining comedian reminiscent of Joan Rivers and played by Jean Smart and the canceled millennial writer (Hannah Einbinder) who’s assigned to help refresh her act with new material. Christopher McDonald, Kaitlin Olson, Jane Adams and Poppy Liu are great, as well. It’s clever, funny and heartfelt.
Let’s be friends! Follow me:
@JesDamiano on Instagram
@jessicadamiano on Facebook
@jesdamiano on Threads
📧 How’m I doing?
I welcome your comments and suggestions, so please send them along — as well as any topics you’d like to see covered and questions you’d like answered in the Ask Jessica section.
Until next week, stay safe. Be well. And always keep your mind in the dirt. —Jessica
You can read all my AP gardening columns here.