I totally agree, 4-6 months seems to be the best and safest bet. Some studies have found that introducing solid foods earlier can lead to different food allergies, and their little bodies aren't developed enough for solids yet.

ModernStork recommends this order for starting solids:

Rice cereal/oatmeal
Other cereals
Fruits, one at a time
Yellow vegetables
Green vegetables

Be sure to keep an open dialog with the child's doctor and keep up with the well-baby visits during this very important time in the child's life! Happy feeding!

http://www.modernstork.com/content/002460.shtml
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-baby/PR00029
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If a baby is fed the normal way (human milk), then they may not be interested in solids for much longer than what we as a society think.

Here is what my well-educated, certified, doctor's wife midwife told me:

Babies are ready for solids after two teeth have erupted. The more nutrient-dense your diet, the later the teeth erupt.

Then, the first thing to start them on is meat. This is for two very good reasons. They have the right enzymes to digest meat first, and your sign that they have them is the two teeth. Secondly, meat is never sweet, and you want to introduce them to foods in order from least sweet to...as sweet as you want them to have. Which might not be very sweet.

To screen for sensitivities, keep it at one meat for 3-4 days. Then add another. This will save you lots of wondering or even E.R. visits.

Next, add dark green veggies, doing the same thing of introducing one new thing every few days. Then add lighter green, then reds, then oranges and yellows.

Follow this with the fruits, again from the least sweet to sweeter.

At the very end, add grains. Babies get the proper enzymes to digest them last, and the increasing incidence of diseases with a connection to a damaged digestive tract, from allergies to Crohn's, may be connected to this century's Western habit of giving grains to babies well before they are equipped to handle them.  Current research indicates this happens after 12 months and sometimes as late as 24 months, so some doctors now recommend waiting until 24 months to introduce grains and grain products.

Of course, follow the usual advice on honey, citrus, and nuts.

The strengths of this method are that you will know what foods bother them and how; you are working with how their body develops instead of risking damage; and because you are introducing new foods slowly, ANY new thing you give them will be greeted with glee. Which means less pickiness and a wider diet, resulting in better nutrition.
Source(s):
My midwife (mentioned above). I used this method with all my kids, who have no allergies or health problems and are not at all picky.

Most of this information was also sent out in the late-80's by one of the baby food companies, who had a monthly newsletter they were sending out. My boyfriend's mom got it for his little sister, and told me about it when I asked why she fed her the way she did.

I also saw an abstract about the grain/enzyme development timetable that was published this summer. I'll post it if I can find a link for it--not sure it's been published other than print form yet.

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