【文摘】可以吃的花

Yael: Don, are you eating my tulips?

Don: Just having myself a little snack.

Y: Of MY tulips? I brought those in here to brighten the place up, not for you to eat! And who eats flowers anyway?

D: Have you seen that movie, Monsoon¹ Wedding? There's a character who eats marigolds. And the other night at dinner I saw a guy with an orchid² on the rim³ of his drink. The bartender said it was edible⁴. And so I've done some investigating, and it turns out that many flowers are edible.

Y: Like what?

D: Tulips, for instance. And lilacs and pansies and roses. Oh, plenty of flowers are edible.

Y: But why should anyone eat flowers? Do they have any nutritional⁵ value or are they delicious?

D: Most people don't eat flowers in large enough quantities to get too much from them nutritionally, but yes, flowers do contain nutrients⁶--some more than others. Rosehips, for instance, are loaded with Vitamin C. In general, pollen⁷ is full of protein and tastes bland⁸. Nectar is composed of sugars and some trace minerals, so it's usually sweet.

Y: And the petals⁹?

D: Petals can be bitter, sweet, savory¹⁰, hot, or bland, you name it. The taste varies from flower to flower. And some petals are good sources of nutrients. Yellow flowers, for example, contain a lot of Vitamin A.

Y: You said SOME flowers are edible. What about the ones that aren't?

D: Other flowers are poisonous. Also, if you show signs of an allergic¹¹ reaction when you touch a particular flower--say, you develop a rash, then keep that kind of flower away from your plate! Use caution before you start serving up your flower garden for dinner.

1 monsoon   

n.季雨，季风，大雨

参考例句：

• The monsoon rains started early this year.今年季雨降雨开始得早。
• The main climate type in that region is monsoon.那个地区主要以季风气候为主要气候类型。

2 orchid   

n.兰花，淡紫色

参考例句：

• The orchid is a class of plant which I have never tried to grow.兰花这类植物我从来没种过。
• There are over 35 000 species of orchid distributed throughout the world.有35,000多种兰花分布在世界各地。

3 rim   

n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界

参考例句：

• The water was even with the rim of the basin.盆里的水与盆边平齐了。
• She looked at him over the rim of her glass.她的目光越过玻璃杯的边沿看着他。

4 edible   

n.食品，食物；adj.可食用的

参考例句：

• Edible wild herbs kept us from dying of starvation.我们靠着野菜才没被饿死。
• This kind of mushroom is edible,but that kind is not.这种蘑菇吃得，那种吃不得。

5 nutritional   

adj.营养的，滋养的

参考例句：

• A diet lacking in nutritional value will not keep a person healthy.缺乏营养价值的饮食不能维持人的健康。
• The labels on food products give a lot of information about their nutritional content.食品上的标签提供很多关于营养成分的信息。

6 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 pollen   

n.[植]花粉

参考例句：

• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。
• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。

8 bland   

adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的

参考例句：

• He eats bland food because of his stomach trouble.他因胃病而吃清淡的食物。
• This soup is too bland for me.这汤我喝起来偏淡。

9 petals   

n.花瓣( petal的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• white petals tinged with blue 略带蓝色的白花瓣
• The petals of many flowers expand in the sunshine. 许多花瓣在阳光下开放。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

10 savory   

adj.风味极佳的，可口的，味香的

参考例句：

• She placed a huge dish before him of savory steaming meat.她将一大盘热气腾腾、美味可口的肉放在他面前。
• He doesn't have a very savory reputation.他的名誉不太好。

11 allergic   

adj.过敏的，变态的

参考例句：

• Alice is allergic to the fur of cats.艾丽斯对猫的皮毛过敏。
• Many people are allergic to airborne pollutants such as pollen.许多人对空气传播的污染物过敏，比如花粉。