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hello, i have read many of your things on elderberry wine and such but i just read in a book that the berries, leaves, and stem are considered to be poisonous. whats the deal?


Jordan

It's possible that different varieties have different properties... or it could just be that elderberries can't be eaten raw. If someone can give a definitive answer, that would be good!

Wulf

I just found we have an elderberry tree (after cutting back a ton weeds and overhanging stuff) and read that the berrys will make you sick so can only be eaten if they have been cooked

i have read up about it, but there is very limited info out there.
some sources say that all parts are poisonous, some say that if you strip the outer bark off of the branch, you can eat or make medicines out of the remainder of the stem. If anyone knows the full story please tell.

:)

There is a recipe on here somewhere for making an insecticide out of the leaves or bark - so that'd be poisonous to blackfly! If there is a search facility on this forum type in elderberry and it will hopefully come up.

I've eaten the berries - but only one or two - so you don't get sick from the odd one. They are really sour but there is something about picking berries when you are wandering past, just not quite the same thing as picking a blackberry though!

i read in one of my winemakin books that the bark and leaves used to be used for medicine, but they probably did more harm than good, as they ARE poisonous and should not be eaten or processed in any way!!!

ben

Elder berries from the Simbuca nigra are not poisonous, very mildly laxative yes but certainly not poisonous. The Leaves and Bark aren't poisonous either though they can induce vomiting, the Leaves more so, but they're still not poisonous and you wouldn't want to make anything except Herbal remedies out of either.

I've eaten the flowers dipped in batter and deep fried as fritters, then dipped in castor sugar. Delicious!

The berries have to be cooked to get rid of the laxative effect, but you still don't want to overdo it. I've made a strong syrup for coughs, added them to apple pies and mince pies and made wine out of them (which is very rich and porty, best "thinned down" 50% with blackberries).

I love elderflower cordial - and elderflower 'champagne' -

Strangely enough I bought a bottle of Cairn O' Mohr elderberry wine the day before yesterday. I've only had a small glass of it (screwtop) - and I have to say that it's not really my thing...

Oh yeah, I forgot about the elderflower champagne! We make more of this every year and it never goes far enough. Two gallons last year, but this year I think five gallons.

Elderflower wine can be very variable in our house, and I haven't found out why yet. The best batch I made was just before my divorce from my ex, and she started carrying away a few bottles every time she took some of her stuff out. By the time I realised there were only 6 out of 40 left and in my strange state of mind I buried the rest in the flower bed. I know, I know, but it messes with your head.

Two years later I found the wine again having completely forgotten about it and it was...

Green elder ointment is pretty wonderful stuff too.

hedgewizard wrote:Elderflower wine can be very variable in our house, and I haven't found out why yet. The best batch I made was just before my divorce from my ex, and she started carrying away a few bottles every time she took some of her stuff out. By the time I realised there were only 6 out of 40 left and in my strange state of mind I buried the rest in the flower bed. I know, I know, but it messes with your head.

Two years later I found the wine again having completely forgotten about it and it was...

HAHAHA Hedgie - nothing wrong with burying stuff in the garden - buried treasure indeed, especially as you had forgotten about it

I use my elderberries for a cold cure syrup. I have given it to my kids since they were tiny. I got the recipe from my aunt in Hereford, and she got it from her great Aunt etc. So far as I know nobody has died of it yet, and we don't get many bad colds! I found the same syrup for sale at a health shop and it cost £8 for about half a pint. I felt quite smug about my three wine bottles full...

I make Elderflower "handcream" using a recipe from a book I bought in the 1970's, "Farmer's Fare". It's brilliant stuff for when your hands get dry and sore in the winter from doing outdoor things. It's just coming up to Elderflower time, so if you want the recipe, just shout out. (It even gets rid of those deep painful cracks in fingertips.)

Spot - can you post the recipe please? Or PM it to me?

I could do with a good cold cure!!