Growing Edible Flowers/Herbs

[Boz]

Hey everyone!
I'm wanting to plant some flowers in my garden to add color but I want to add edible flowers for the bunnies!
I found a list of Safe Flowers but I wanted to double check with all of you because I k now I read that Marigolds can cause irritation on a website (even though they are considered safe on many other lists).

Safe flowers:

• Aster Carnation Daisy Geranium Geum Helenium Hollyhock Honesty Marguerite Marigold Michaelmas daisy Nasturtium Rose Stock Sunflower Wallflower

Unsafe flowers:

• Acacia Aconite Antirrhinum Anemone Brugmansia Columbine Crocus Daffodil Dahlia Delphinium Feverfew Gypsophila Hellebore Hyacinth Iris Larkspur Lily of the Valley Lobelia Love-in-a-mist Lupin Monkshood (aconite)

Also, what herbs do you all grow for your bunny?
Right now I have
Parsley (which came back from last year!)
Spearmint
Dill

And I'm growing a bunch of Basils as well.

I also am considering getting...
Rosemary
Sage
Cilantro
Balm
Chocolate Mint (had it last year but I don't think it's coming back)

:biggrin:

 

[Shaded Night Rabbitry]

I'm not growing flowers, but next weekend I'm planting tooons of veggies and herbs.

We have seeds for:
Parsley
Cilantro
Carrots
Some sort of baby carrot
Peas (more so for me. XD)
Catnip (dunno if they can have it, but my cats'll love it)
And some other things I don't remember. But I have 800 sq feet to fill. o.o;;

 

[Boz]

I plan on planting in our main garden too. Did that last year! This year I'm planting a larger variety of veggies all for the rabbits. Spoiled bunnies!

 

[NorthernAutumn]

I disagree with carnation and geranium. It's on a number of Toxic plant lists.
From what I've read on marigold, it seems that it absolutely stinks, and buns won't eat it unless completely desperate.

 

[Hazel-Mom]

Pot marigolds (calendula) don't stink, and Hazel loves them!

You must have read about some of the other plants, of the Tagetes family, that are also called marigold (aka Common marigolds, French marigolds, Mexican marigolds or African marigolds).

I think the same confusion excists for geraniums. The "real" geraniums may be fine, the "garden" geraniums, which are really Pelargonium, but also called geranium, usually are not good for pets. Even the ASPCA lists "Pelargonium species" as the scientific name for the geranium they say is toxic to pets.
There have been reports of pelargoniums causing skin irritation and dermatitis, both in rabbits and in humans.

Carnations again can cause confusion. Some of them have edible flowers, some can cause mild dermatitis or irritation when eaten. Either way, the toxicity is mild to low.

 

[NorthernAutumn]

Thanks so much for clarify the marigolds, Hilde Yep, I was thinking about the regular old marigolds; it's on a number of rabbit-proof garden lists,

Do you have an image of a real geranium you can link us all to? Do you have some specific cultivars of safe geraniums or carnations in mind?

 

[Hazel-Mom]

The carnation variety Dianthus barbatus (Sweet William) has edible flowers (only the petals).
Also Dianthus caryophyllus (Clove Pink), the wild ancestor of our cultivated garden carnations. Since that is not native here, the ones found here are most likely cultivars. On some lists of edible flowers (for cooking and decorating), the flower petals of the cultivars are listed as edible too, though.

The young green leaves of Geranium maculatum (Wild Geranium, aka spotted geranium or wood geranium) were eaten by Native Americans. The plant was also used in herbal remedies, both by Native Americans and early settlers. Chipmunks eat the seeds, and deer often browse on the leaves.
Another, related, variety, Geranium carolinianum (Carolina cranesbill), is also said to have edible flowers (petals only). The leaves may or may not be edible too.

 

[NorthernAutumn]

Thanks so much I'll add all that to the library