SC - lavendar-OT-OOP

[Sue Clemenger]

As a florist for many years, I can confirm that you *do not* want to eat
anything from a commercial florist. It is true that commercial flowers grown
in SA generally contain more pesticides than ones from the US or Holland -
but the US flowers are bad enough. Even the preservatives in the water
contain things (antibacterials, minerals, metals) that you don't want to be
eating. I know that the recommendations from the professional groups as long
as 15 years ago recommended that florists not eat or smoke while arranging
flowers. I don't recall that stopping anyone. :-/ 

There's also a high bacterial content, that because the flowers aren't
consumable, no one worries too much about. We used a lot of Clorox, but I
also remember getting badly infected cuts on my hands, in spite of good
hand-washing procedures.

On the other hand, I know that several years ago a liquor made from
commercially-grown roses was analyzed and found to be safe, by someone who
seemed to be reputable - a chemist or somesuch. Still, I'm not particularly
convinced - I know too much. 

Also (another reason *not* to buy SA roses), the rose trade is largely
responsible for the import of cocaine into the US. Customs probes the boxes
with spikes that pierce the box, "feeling" for packages of drugs. Should
they pierce a bag, and the coke contaminates the roses, I can assure you
that I wouldn't want to consume it!

Oh, FYI, I can also confirm Magdalena's comments on the working conditions
of SA flower workers. However, IMHO the US workers aren't particularly
better protected, especially in the small local growing operations. 

Anyway, better safe than sorry. If you're going to eat it, grow your own.
I've been having very good luck controlling aphids and whitefly on my roses
and herbs with bi-weekly applications of lady bugs. Stubborn clumps of
aphids get a shot of pyrethrums. I won't have enough roses this year for
cooking with, but I hope to next year, and I want them to be safe to eat. I
think those Angel Face rose petals would be so pretty sprinkled on a
salat....

Maredudd

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Tara Sersen [mailto:tsersen at nni.com]
> Sent: Saturday, June 03, 2000 1:21 PM
> To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org
> Subject: Re: SC - lavendar
> 
> 
> > In general any flower that you pick up from a florist is a 
> REALLY bad idea
> > to use in cooking.  There are little to no regulations on 
> pesticide use in
> > greenhouses if the food was not intended for consumption.  
> This goes along
> > with the theory that you don't want florist roses for 
> making rosewater
> > unless you know that they are organic, or that the grower 
> uses biological
> > control agents and not chemical control agents.
> 
<snip>