tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Jul 8, 2019 23:30:10 GMT -5
The wild Elderberries in our area are loaded with blossoms! I’m feeling a bit foolish with my high hopes of harvesting a decent crop before the birds devour them all!
I guess that kind of enthusiasm .... positive expectations .... is the bottom line of every gardener.
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Post by spike on Jul 9, 2019 20:10:05 GMT -5
OMG I LOVE LOVE LOVE Elderberries!
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Post by Gianna on Jul 9, 2019 22:03:33 GMT -5
We have a native species of elderberry that produces berries, but they are horrid - small and quite dry. When I was in college, one of our roommates collected some and made a pie. Well, tried to make a pie. It was her first pie ever. Not only was the berry filling inedible, when when she made the crust, instead of trimming off all the excess, she folded it under. Waste not, want not. Unfortunately that created a layer of dough along the sides that seemed a half inch thick. I had totally forgotten about that poor pie. At least she tried.
I hope you get some of the berries. I'm not sure I've ever tasted a good one.
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Jul 9, 2019 22:55:31 GMT -5
I don’t care for the flavor of elderberries. I collect them purely for the medicinal properties.
I steam them to extract the juice. If I feel myself catching a head or chest cold, I start drinking the juice .... 1-2 cups per day. Seems to chase that those cold and flu symptoms right out the door.
When I first discovered the effects of elderberry juice, to built up immunity, I didn’t have a cold for 5 years!
The wild berries I collect around here are quite small but with all the extra moisture we are getting, I’m thinking that this year they will be more plump.
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Post by carolyn on Jul 10, 2019 6:52:08 GMT -5
I also harvest them for medicinal purposes as well as pie and jelly. I have one almost as tall as my house. I think I could pick berries from my upstairs window. We also have SWD which invades just about the time elderberries are ready although we have already seen damage in the raspberries. I know there are people who don't like to spray but in order to get a crop sometimes we have to resort to something. We alternate spinosad and mustang max to keep the SWD under control. Birds are another issue altogether but we invested in a spray called "avian control" made out of almond oil or extract or something. it smells fabulous. it also repels the birds rather than harming them. we sprayed it on corn last year because the birds were destroying it. it also kept the coons and skunks out of it. If your bush is small enough cover it with a floating row cover to keep the birds away from the berries. You can do that as soon as the berries are set and green.
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Post by carolyn on Jul 10, 2019 6:53:30 GMT -5
We have a native species of elderberry that produces berries, but they are horrid - small and quite dry. When I was in college, one of our roommates collected some and made a pie. Well, tried to make a pie. It was her first pie ever. Not only was the berry filling inedible, when when she made the crust, instead of trimming off all the excess, she folded it under. Waste not, want not. Unfortunately that created a layer of dough along the sides that seemed a half inch thick. I had totally forgotten about that poor pie. At least she tried. I hope you get some of the berries. I'm not sure I've ever tasted a good one. You need a good recipe and crust. an elderberry pie is not for a first time pie maker.
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Post by brownrexx on Jul 10, 2019 7:56:23 GMT -5
Many years ago my neighbor brought me a big bag of elderberries. I had never heard of them at the time but I made a delicious jelly with them. We all loved it.
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Post by paulf on Jul 10, 2019 11:54:32 GMT -5
My Dad could make wine out of anything. Elderberry was one of those things. We tried to get him to make wine out of juniper berries but it tasted like gin.
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Post by paquebot on Jul 11, 2019 11:53:49 GMT -5
It does make a great wine with lovely color. However, has to be kept in brown bottles and in the dark. If not, it turns brown.
To separate the berries from the stems, freeze them in paper bags. When frozen, shake them vigorously and the berries will separate. On a cold windy day, remove the main stems and winnow the small stuff.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Jul 11, 2019 20:10:49 GMT -5
If wanting just the juice ..... is it safe to put the berries AND the stems into the streamer to extract the juice?
Or .... Would steaming the stems along with the berries be discouraged?
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Post by paquebot on Jul 11, 2019 22:09:41 GMT -5
Never used them in the steam juicer. First time making wine, I did not separate them from their little green stems. The nylon bag was coated with some sort of green "glue". Never could get it out and had to replace the bag.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Aug 1, 2019 17:14:45 GMT -5
My high hopes for a good elderberry harvest are lessening. Tons of generous blossoms just a couple weeks ago, do not seem to be yielding a generous supply of developing berries ... 🙁
We certainly have had adequate moisture ..... wondering if it’s due to poor pollination.
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Post by paquebot on Aug 1, 2019 19:18:56 GMT -5
Elderberry blossoms are self-pollinating. It may be too early for all to have developed. But then, I also have seen some plants with few berries on each cluster. Possibly rain at the wrong time washed the pollen out.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
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Post by carolyn on Aug 1, 2019 21:31:13 GMT -5
tallpines, I toss stems and berries into the steamer basket. I pull off the large stems so I can fit more fruit in the pan. My elderberries are turning already.
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Aug 1, 2019 22:37:48 GMT -5
My elderberries are turning already. Ugh! I’m still waiting for blossoms on my Pole Beans! Lots of vines still developing but no blossoms yet! 🙁
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Aug 17, 2019 18:10:12 GMT -5
Well, by golly! Even though the bushes in our neighborhood area have very few berries, I was lucky to come across a bush loaded with ripe black juicy berries a few miles away. Thankful, I found them before the birds did, and thankful to gather up a bunch of them, before the bad storms predicted for this evening!
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Post by carolyn on Aug 17, 2019 20:33:45 GMT -5
my elderberries are now finished. I picked the last of them today and made juice again. all total I made 17 quarts of juice which is about roughly 2 bushels of berries.
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tallpines
Pro Member
Posts: 298
Zone:: 4a
Favorite Vegetable:: This week, it’s Rhubarb
Joined: February 2019
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Post by tallpines on Aug 17, 2019 21:13:19 GMT -5
my elderberries are now finished. I picked the last of them today and made juice again. all total I made 17 quarts of juice which is about roughly 2 bushels of berries. I will be lucky if I get 3 pints 😏
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Post by carolyn on Aug 18, 2019 19:48:52 GMT -5
my elderberries are now finished. I picked the last of them today and made juice again. all total I made 17 quarts of juice which is about roughly 2 bushels of berries. I will be lucky if I get 3 pints 😏 thats too bad. time to get a couple plants in your yard? the biggest challenge to any soft fruit after July 1st for us is the SWD. its a total pest that destroys everything. we have to start spraying as soon as about the mid of July to get anything now. My elderberries all came from my yard. there are three nice sized bushed now. I have to get a ladder out to pick the front bush. It is as tall as my second story window.
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Post by bluelacedredhead on Feb 16, 2020 10:52:13 GMT -5
I just buy Dehydrated ones online although they are becoming scarce.
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