In addition to being used for ornamental purposes, plants' flowers can also be eaten. In China, there are many edible flower species. For example, daylily is a perennial herb whose flower buds are not only delicious, nutritious, and rich in carotene, but also have the functions of stopping bleeding, anti-inflammation, clearing heat, promoting urination, aiding digestion, improving eyesight, and calming the nerves, with therapeutic effects on conditions such as vomiting blood, bloody stools, urinary obstruction, and insomnia. However, fresh daylilies contain a substance called colchicine, which is non-toxic itself, but after being absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract, it is oxidized into two colchicine in the body, which is highly toxic. Therefore, before eating fresh daylilies, they need to be blanched with boiling water and soaked in water for more than 2 hours to destroy the colchicine. When eating dried daylilies, they should also be soaked in water or warm water several times before consumption.
Cauliflower is also one of people's favorite vegetables. The edible flower head is a white and smooth hemispherical structure, with shortened branches inside and a large number of proliferating meristems on the surface. Most of these meristems are early inflorescence meristems. The flower head of green cauliflower is composed of a large number of proliferating meristems that are in the process of differentiation but cannot open temporarily. Studies have shown that the occurrence of flower heads is related to mutations in the BobCAULIFLOWER and BobAP1 genes.
Chrysanthemum is rich in vitamins, chrysanthemum glycosides, amino acids, adenine, etc., and has the functions of removing external wind-cold, detoxifying and clearing heat, and refreshing the mind, which can be used to treat hypertension, migraine, and acute conjunctivitis. The washed chrysanthemum petals mixed with honey and baked into cakes have a delicate and sweet taste. The commercially available "Chrysanthemum Crystal" is a beverage made from Hangzhou chrysanthemum.
In addition, the flowers of plants such as plum blossoms, white magnolias, locust flowers, and wisteria can also be eaten.