Harvesting Elderberry in Northeast Florida Gardens
Elderberry has to be one of my all time favorite Native plants to grow in our area. Not just for your food forest spots, these plants are unbelievably beautiful whether you ever harvest and cook the berries for medicinal syrup or not. Even if you left every last bloom and berry for the wildlife this is an EXCELLENT ornamental plant. You may see elderberry plants being all “tall and scrappy” along the roadside ditches here in Northeast Florida but when these plants are in a landscape with some irrigation and maybe some compost of fertilizer, you will instantly see the untapped potential they hold.
For me, If you want to not see that ugly wood fence in your yard and maybe get some additional privacy over the 6 ft your fence offers PLANT THESE!!! within just a few years it will be 10 ft tall and full of flowers. Your neighbors will never know you were trying to block them out, they will assume you loved these plants!
Elderberry plants like moist soil areas but tolerate sandy dry stuff just as well. ( I have an absolutely stunning specimen in my home garden in an un-irrigated spot in sandy garbage soil… who knew)
The blooms are enormous panicles of white that can get up to 3-10 inches across and attract all kinds of pollinators and wildlife, myself included. Elderberry Plants are absolutely stunning when in full bloom. The blooms are followed by dark purple black berries that are a feast for the local birds and can be harvested for medicinal use to help ease colds and flu during the winter time. Foragers and wild craftsmen harvest the blooms to make a local champagne type alcohol called ‘elderblow’/ elder flower wine.
