Chef Matthew Lightner, of New York's Atera, is likewise attracted to nasturtiums' vivid saffron color and spicy taste.

WSJ: Petal Pushers: Chefs Pick Edible Flowers

Lightner and a full-time forager provide Atera with wintergreen, nettles, other plants, and fungi, mainly from upstate New York, and one wall of its dining room has been transformed into a vertical herb garden, overflowing with aromatics like camphor, lavender, and mint.

NEWYORKER: Atera