European elder - WEMPlapedia, the wild edible and medicinal plant encyclopedia

Sambucus nigra

Caprifoliaceae

Edible Uses

Flower

Syrup or elderberry drink can be prepared of the flowers. If you dip the umbels into pancake dough and frie them, a delicious dessert will be your reward.

Fruit

The raw elderberries are slightly toxic, it can cause diarrhea or nausea in larger quantities. During cooking, the toxic substances are degraded. Jam, syrup, jelly or bottled fruit can be prepared of the berries. The seeds can be removed with a ricer.

Medicinal Uses

Flower

The elderberry flower tea has an excellent sudorific effect. In case of cold, drink it lukewarm in sips, preferably in the bed.

Fruit

The elderberry jam is laxative, diuretic and purifies the blood.

Shoot

The decoction prepared from the bark has a strong laxative effect. Do not use it often. If you do so, count one day off !

Main Characteristics

He is a deciduous, 2 – 7 m tall shrub or small tree. His greenery is extended, branches are bending down. The leaves are borne oppositely, leaves are pinnate, composed of 5 - 7 leaflets. The umbels are composed of 5-petaled, off-white flowers, they are located on the shoot-ends. They are pleasantly fragrant. The fruits are shiny black-colored berries with dark purple juice and a relatively big seed that are hanging down from the branches.

Habitats

Along the road side

Mesic deciduous forest

Shrub forest

Harvesting aid

Flower

July, June

Cut of the fully open, but not yet withered inflorescences with scissors. Gently shake off the inflorescences to get rid of the insects. If you want to dry the umbels, then place them in a warm, airy place, the flowers upwards. When the flowers are completely dry, you can remove from the stems by hand.

Fruit

August, October, September

The umbels composed of all-black berries can be gathered. The unripe berries are poisonous! You can remove the berries from the stems easily with a fork .

Shoot

April, March

The young 15 – 20 cm sprouts are cut off with pruning shears and the bark is peeled off for further use. If gathered in a rainy period, the bark is easily peelable.

Confusion with other plants

Sambucus racemosa

Red elderberry

The red elderberry mainly live in mountainous regions. The inflorescence is similar to the European elder's, they are both fragrant, and the use of the two species is the same. The red colored ripe fruit of the red elderberry can be confused with unripe fruit of the European elder. It can be identified on one hand on the basis of the habitat, on the other hand on the thorough examination of the fruit umbel. The red elder's mature red fruits are equally red, contrary to the European elder's unripe fruits, that are not homogeneous in color, green to red and black berries can be found in the umbel.