Eating Redbud Blossoms
The redbud’s bright pink flowers are safe to eat and a good source of vitamins, according to Ozark healer Brandon Weston in Ozark Folk Magic. He also recommends the bean pods that follow the blossoms.
“Harvest them when they are under an inch and a half in length. Eat the pods raw or throw them in with other cooked vegetables. If you harvest them when they are larger than an inch and a half, they turn tough and astringent.”
Weston says some hillfolk use redbud leaves for divination, placing a leaf with the stem trimmed off in a wide bowl filled with spring water and waiting for its movement to answer questions.