Are Begonia flowers edible?
Yes! The rumour is true, First Nations Peoples have been using Begonias in their plant medicines for thousands of years, and the leaves and flowers of some species are edible too. They have however adapted to produce high levels of oxalic acid to protect themselves from insects and herbivores, so please make sure to check that yours is edible before you nip out to the garden to forage a salad.
Bright ideas for potted colour
If you’re always wondering what other uses you can put your plants to, oxalic acid is a mordant used to fix plant dyes, so there’s potential for your Begonias to yield even more joy and colour when you prune or uproot them at the end of the season.
In the hard to find Dyes from Plants of Australia and New Zealand (1971), Joyce Lloyd says scarlet Begonia flowers yield a bright pink when mordanted with alum. If you decide to experiment, remember to wear gloves, keep your dye pots separate from your food pots and work in well-ventilated spaces.