edible flowers
“ Many common
hydroponic crops, including
broccoli, cauliflower, and
artichoke, are the floral
tissue of the plant.”
The white or pale pink flowers of a basil
plant have a mild, spicy flavor, while
chervil and fennel flowers have a faint anise
flavor. Mint flowers often taste mildly of mint;
however, this is quite variable between the
different species of mint, so taste testing the
flowers before harvest is recommended to avoid
overly strong blooms. The flowers of woodier
herbs such as thyme, sage, oregano, and rosemary
all have flavors and aromas like the foliage, though
often they are milder herbal tastes. Arugula flowers,
a popular addition to salad mixes, are small and white
with a spicy flavor that can become strong under certain
growing conditions. Borage flowers have long been used as
a garnish and edible bloom due to their attractive blue color
and size. They have a mild cucumber-like flavor and are not
overpowering in salads and drinks.
SUMMER SQUASH FLOWERS
Summer squash, also known as zucchini or courgette,
provides two marketable products: fruit and the large edible
flowers. The latter are often prepared as a delicate dish by
stuffing, coating, and frying. Italian varieties such as Costata
Romanesco are excellent producers of high-quality flowers,
which are harvested at an early stage. However, all zucchini
flowers are edible. Flowers and fruit with flowers attached are
specialty crops. As such, they often receive premium prices
compared to zucchini fruit alone to compensate for the lower
yield and greater investment in labor and handling practices.
With squash plants, it is important to be able to distin-
guish between the male and female flowers. Male flowers
form on a long, thin stalk, usually lower down on the plant.
These are harvested for edible flower production. The female
flowers, on the other hand, produce a small fruitlet, which
later develops into the harvestable courgette fruit. By only
harvesting the male flowers just as they open and leaving
the female flowers to form fruit, courgette plants can provide
two products from the same crop.
Courgette flowers have a short shelf life, thus they need
to be harvested daily at the correct stages of maturity.
They also need to be handled with care. The male flower
stalks should be cut two to three inches down from the bud
before the flower begins to fully open. For those growing
edible squash blooms for market, the harvested blossoms
should then be packed in rows on trays or shallow boxes
and chilled immediately to slow the rate of flower opening
and preserve the delicate tissue. Ideally, these should be
prepared and eaten within a few hours of harvest. A market
also exists for very small courgette fruit with the female
flower still attached. Fruit needs to be harvested before
the flower fades, typically at around two to three inches.
Timing is critical for this process.
80
grow cycle
Zucchini produces both fruit and edible flowers.
Since the shelf life of zucchini flowers is short,
hydroponic growers with a local market have a real
advantage in terms of getting a super-fresh, high-
quality product to the customer. The production of
squash plants for edible flower production is much
the same as for those grown for fruit harvests, though
the plants require a little more space to ensure the
blooms have sufficient room to develop and to make
harvesting easier. Maintaining good air flow around
the base of the plants is also essential as the flowers