I’ve noticed berries on the elder trees are ripening nicely. The elder tree is more like a sprawling bush than a tree really, which is handy when it comes to picking the fruit. Most people associate elderberries with wine making. I know I have made a few bottles before and they were delicious…. Well they were better than the previous attempts at making wine anyway.

My brother and myself, being inventive teenagers, decided to make a brew and store some wine in a wardrobe in our bedroom away from parental eyes. We were a bit limited for ingredients so we decided to make the concoction out of trebor mints and polo mint, which were easily available from the local shop.

These were added to the water, yeast and sugar. After they were mixed and left for a few weeks to ferment we put the liquid into bottles and screwed on the tops. They lived happily in the wardrobe for another few weeks until the pressure got too much.

Whilst we were at school one day the bottles exploded, sending the nurtured wine and glass all over the clothes in the wardrobe and flooded the bedroom carpet. That put an end to our bootlegging business…

Back to the elders. The trees are very tolerant of pollution so they will grow practically anywhere. They have attractive flowers that come out around May to June. These can be covered in batter and dipped into hot oil for a minute until they are brown and crispy. They smell a bit like cat spray when they are fresh, but cooked they taste delicious!

The flowers can also be made into a drink, similar to lemonade if sugar is added or if it is mixed with equal parts of yarrow and peppermint, a refreshing hot drink. Later in the year, from now until October, the berries ripen. These berries are rich in vitamins C and A They are good for making wine as I have mentioned and also syrups, jams, and chutney.

Herbalists have used all of the elder for years. The tree is shrouded in ancient mystery, one being that you shouldn’t cut down or burn the wood without asking the elder mother, who lives inside the tree. If you have ever tried to burn elder wood you’ll know how reluctant it is to burn, maybe it’s true… I’ll ask the elder mother in future!There are other uses for the plant.

The leaves can be used to make a brew to protect plants from aphids and other pests. Old bark makes black dye, the leaves make green dye and the berries can make either blue or purple dye, depending on how ripe they are.

Elderflower cordial

Later on in the year we will be getting elder berries to make jam and wine but for now we can be using the flowers for a refreshing cordial.

Elderflower cordial is a delicious summer tonic that you can make yourself. Julie’s mother makes plenty of bottles of this tasty drink every year and it goes down really well with children and adults alike.

This recipe is best made with fresh flowers, which have been picked on a sunny day when they are still creamy in colour and before they fade to white. At this time they have the highest amount of pollen, which contains the yeast.

• 4.5 litres (1 gallon) of water
• 1.8kg (4lb) cane sugar
• Juice and thinly peeled rind of 6 unwaxed lemons
• 70 grams of citric acid (2.5 ounces)
• 40 elderflower heads. Shake them well to remove live insects and only wash if picked beside a road.

(The ingredients are very open to interpretation, you might like to use less lemons or use 30ml (2 tblsp) of cider or wine vinegar in place of the citric acid) There is also a recipe for elderflower champagne which only uses 2 flower heads.

For an extra special treat at dinnertime, why not dip the fresh flower heads in batter and deep fry.

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More wines and cordials
written by ben, May 17, 2010

There was a time when most people knew about the plants in the hedgerows. Not necessarily their botanical names as a lot of these plants would have had different local names depending on which part of the country you were from. People would look upon the plants as a natural outdoor chemist where they could get a cure for most ailments and a pick me up tonic for any time of the year.

Depending on the time of year these wild plants emit a unique fragrance that is as powerful as any photographic image for recalling times walking and playing in the country. They can induce a clean, protective feeling that stays with you forever. Some of these beautiful plants that bring the feeling of the country to your nose can be made into drinks, which are perfect for helping you keep cool in the summer and give a warming effect in the winter. Even now, most of these fabulous drinks are not available in the shops, so the pleasure is also on the picking.

Plants from the wild can be cultivated in the garden by replicating their environment but it’s very hard to improve on the plants own choice of soil. Therefore I would suggest that if you are picking the flowers, roots or leaves, to get them from places where they have self- set away from pollution and roads. Only take from areas with permission though, you don’t want to get chased off by an angry landowner.

Gathering

Choose a dry, sunny day. Not too early or too late. The leaves and flowers will dry better and be less susceptible to damage if the dew has gone from them. Roots on the other hand can be pulled up better after a drop of rain as this make the soil looser.

Pick for the Future

Remember that if a plant is stripped of it’s leaves, seeds, flowers or roots, it will not survive to give you more goodies the following year. Only take small amounts from the plants, leaving them to flourish for future generations.

Drying

If you are not using the plant parts straight away, they can be stored in airtight containers after drying. Spread out your picked leaves or flowers onto newspapers then place in a well ventilated area and turned regularly. When the leaves or flowers are dry they can be easily stripped from their stalks and put straight into glass jars for storage.

Wines

Some flowers are perfect for making into wines. Agrimony, which grows on wasteland makes a very good wine, so does wild barley, clover, dandelion, gooseberry, honeysuckle, lime flower, meadowsweet, nettle, raspberry, rose hip and tansy. Wine can be made from anything really, but the difference is with these wild plant wines is that they are delicious and don’t tend to blow up in the wardrobe like the ones I made from Trebor Mints when I was a teenager.

Nettles

One of my personal favourites, the nettle, is perfect for making a hearty soup in spring and gives us loads of goodness. Tasting similar to spinach when cooked, it gives up vitamin A,C, D, iron, potassium, manganese and calcium. Stinging nettle tea, on the other hand also helps to break down arthritis crystals and gout, has anti allergy properties against hay fever and asthma, helps to reduce eczema, shrinks enlarged prostrates and haemorrhoids, increases breast milk production and helps reduce heavy menstrual bleeding, which isn’t bad for a plant you see growing at the bottom of the garden.

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