Plant Parts We Eat

Which parts of a plant do we usually eat? The seed? The fruit? When we eat asparagus, we are eating the stem of the plant. When we eat spinach or lettuce, we are eating the plant’s leaves. We eat the fruit of squash, cucumber, and tomato plants. When we eat corn or peas, we are eating seeds, and when we eat radish or carrot, we are eating their roots. Cauliflower and broccoli plants produce flowers we like to eat. With some plants, we eat more than one part. The root of the beet plant is what most people like to eat, but the leaves are also good to eat. We eat beet leaves in salads when the leaves are young and tender. When they are bigger, they taste better cooked. We usually eat the root of the onion plant. The stems taste good too when they are young and delicate. Some of the plants we eat are poisonous if we eat the wrong part. The leaves of the tomato plant are poisonous. For many years people would not even eat tomatoes, because they thought the entire plant was poisonous. Now we know the fruit of the tomato plant has vitamins that are very good for us. Tomatoes are also delicious.