Pink Fox: its Raining...IN MY HOUSE! :/

[Neko-chan]

...

 

[pinkfox]

ooo so there is a native species...

the ones im used to are the Sambucus canadensis and the Sambucus nigra
looks like the canadensis is native here too... yay!

elderberry is a large shrub, they get very large, and they get these puffs of flowers that looks like queen annes lace.
the flowers are usually white but some of the nigra species are pink and slightly lemons scented. the flowers are great steeped as a tea to aid in flu preventiaon and "cure"
the berries form in place of the flowers, tiny little dark purple berries in large clusters...
there is a strain with gold berries and one wiht powder blue berries, but the dark purple are most common the berries are very tart fresh but make amazing jam/jelly and wine and are incredibly high in vit-c.

the elderberry berry...
the individual berries are about the size of a small pea

in flower, the flower heads can be a foot or more across but typically are the size of a large hand outstretched.

from what ive been finding online there are also none edible species here in the US.
they look very similar but the berries are red...red elderberries are NOT edible...there not highly poisenous...but they are mildly poisenous and taste horrible...
even the purple elderberries are better "cooked" they tend to be quite tart raw lol.
the flower and berry is edible, but wash hands after handling, and tools if cutting wood, the sap and stems contain a mild toxin.

huckleberry id never heard of, but looking at pics it looks more like a dark blueberry almost...elderberries are much more cluster forming into tiny little current looking berries.

im suprised there not more popular in the US yet being there is a native species, i just assumed they must be hard to get in the us and thats why there hard to find, but with the canadensis growing wild...oooo...definatly keep your eyes peeled.
the berries are considered a "super food" and supposedly higher in antioxidents than blueberries, probably about the same levels as the acai berry. (and much easier to grow lol)
ive seen them called simply "Elder" in some books.

 

[sunsaver]

My property is covered in wild elderberries that are very dark purple, almost black. I have confirmed that they are indeed elderberries, but they are very bland, not sweet or tart, have a large seed to fruit size ratio, and i've read that they can have some level of toxicity. Some of the older "shrubs" are more like small trees. Do you think this variety of Elderberry is safe to eat? I figured it's only good for wine or jelly, with lemon and sugar added for flavor.

 

[Wifezilla]

I knew I wanted to steal Willow for a reason

 

[Denim Deb]

Is elderberry like huckelberry, or are they both different? We used to have tons of huckelberry bushes on the ranch.

Huckleberries are a type of blueberry. Normally, they're smaller and have bigger seeds, but other than that, they look pretty much like blueberries.

 

[pinkfox]

sun, as long as the berries are that black/dark purple you can eat them (its the red kind that have the toxicity in the berries) and yes you are absolutly right
they make better wine and/or jelly than for fresh eating
alot of people also use grape juice instead of lemon to make jams/jellys with them but lemon also works perfectly.
the flowers are also safe, and make a good tea for flu/colds.
there alot of work (because as you found out, high seed to fruit ratio) but so very worth it, they surpass blueberries for antioxidants and have almost as much vitamin c as rose hips.
(and s wine and jelly/jam, they are delicious!)

f the bush you have is growing a little haywire or not producing heavily pruning elderberry is actually very easy.

you ideally want to keep the bush wth 1 and 2 yr old canes, 3yr old branches start to slow down on production, 2 yr old canes are the best if your looking for fruit/flower production.

the other hting alot of people do with wild shrubs that artn roducing very well is literally in fall or early spring they cut them back to about 12" (some go completly to the ground) itll take about 2 years after such a drastic pruning to get fruit again but it completly renews the shrub.

just remember that the wood IS mildly toxic so it shouldnt be used on a fire pit and you should wash up after handling the wood/pruning.

i personally think they are beautiful even without the usable berries.

 

[snapshot]

My mom used to make elderberry pie!!!!!!!! Mmmmmmm!!!!

 

[FarmerJamie]

I always thought it was pretty common here in Ohio - my grandparents had elderberries lining the cow lane from the night pasture to the day pasture.

Pie, jam, my grandmother could cook with those little berries!!!

I found out about elderberry wine later in life.....

 

[pinkfox]

yay praise for the elderberry!

ive asked at a couple of local nurseries after it cause dad wants to get back into wine maing and elderberry is so easy to grow and use and he used ot make it all the time, so i wanted ot put a couple of shrubs in for him and they all looked at me like i had 6 heads...so i wasnt sure if you guys just didnt have it here, had a different name for it or something...good to know im not completly insane lol.

there EVERYWHERE in the UK lol.


in other news..
what do you ge when you combine a macaw with a cheese...
no lunch, thats what.

i grabed some cheese to have for lunch...
jack jack flew over, grabed it and before i could get it back off him hed eaten it all...hes a cheese eating machine.

so its salad and beef for lunch instead lol i put him in his cage before fixing this lunch lol.

 

[Denim Deb]

http://gurneys.com/product.asp?splid=SPLID02&pn=69453&bhcd2=1203220895