When thinking of herbs and vegetables , we usually don’t think flowers (stuffed squash blossoms, artichokes and broccoli excluded). In fact, farmers harvest greens before the plants put on flowers, or they wait until the bees have done their job and harvest the fruit or seeds, like tomatoes or beans.
But we are not farmers. In our garden, one can find quite a few herbs and vegetable in flower. At a close look, they are really pretty:
From top left: The delicate flowers of horse radish have a lovely scent of honey, Few people see asparagus flowers, we usually eat these inflorescences when they just come out of the ground. Cilantro flowers will eventually produce coriander seeds. Celery flowers profusely in our garden and it also readily self-seeds; little celery plants are found everywhere.
From top left: the yellow flowers of lovage. Chive flowers are pretty enough for a bouquet; bees love them, too. Kale flowers have also been a great nectar source for our bees. Garlic flowers are harvested by farmers in the region and sold for an exorbitant price as “garlic scapes”.
Of course, here and elsewhere, some herbs are grown not only for their aroma but also for their pretty flowers.
Sage and rue. Here, rue is grown mostly as ornamental plant, but its leaves are part of Mediterranean and African spice mixes.
Off-topic but really pretty: Lavender is actually farmed for its aromatic flowers.