We did run into a little poison oak, but that was easily avoided. I think Bill and I were the only ones close enough to maybe get some on our clothes, and we didn’t have any problems. But it was a good lesson in identifying it, especially since it was still all nice and green with no tell tale reddish leaves. Poison Oak spreads it’s toxin through an oil it excretes. These oils spread easier when in heat, sweat, hot water or steam. But because it is an oil, it does not easily come of with soap and water. For those of you who are not used to dealing with poison oak here are a few basic tips:

1. Take off all your clothes and bath in cold water immediately after exposure. (never warm or hot)
2. While bathing rinse any areas you think might be exposed in rubbing alcohol. Then rinse again with soap and water.
3. Keep all these clothes separate from others and prewash usng rubbing alcohol. (You may want to make sure it will not bleach your clothes, but I haven’t had any problems.) Then follow with a regular wash.

Following these basic steps we have never had an out break in our family. But enough about poison oak, we saw so many other beautiful things. Like the Sacramento River in the morning, red tail hawks soaring, great egrets, wild roses, jack rabbits, not to mention the elderberries! It was a beautiful and productive morning! I am very greatfull to Bill and Wildlands for all their help with this field trip.

I always freeze the berries immediately when get home, they are so much easier to get off the stems when frozen. This time I laid them on cookie sheets and before placing them in the freezer. This made it easier because the did not get tangled in one another.

Then I took them out one cookie sheet at a time and shook the berries off. It worked very well. I rinsed them a few times in a bowl of ice water to clean them. I like to try to keep the berries cold, so they are less likely to pop and let some of the juice leak out. I think next year, I might try washing them while on the stems and before freezing them. I am still experimenting with the best way to wash them with out loosing the juice. Even so, I still had plenty of juicy berries left.

Next I place them all in a large pot with just enough water to cover them all. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes.

I then juice the berries in batches. I place a layer of cheesecloth in a strainer and them mash the berries in the strainer and collect the juice in a bowl below. I them place the remaining pulp in a bag before throwing away. (It doesn’t have the most pleasant smell).

This time I then poured the juice into ice cube trays to freeze it. After they are all frozen, I transfered them to a freezer bag. That way, I can take out what I need through out the year to make the syrup.

Recipes on the next page…

Elderberry Syrup

1. Boil 3 cups of elderberry juice with 15 whole cloves for 10 minutes. Optional: I also add 1 cup raspberry or dark cherry juice (unsweetened).
2. After the 10 minutes, you can choose to remove the cloves, or leave them in the syrup.
3. Take off the heat and add 1 cup honey and 1 cup sugar. Many recipes call for twice the amount of sugar, so you can add sugar until desired taste, but remember it will taste sweeter as it cools. I like using half local honey because consuming local honey can help build the immune system.
4. I place the syrup in jars (makes 6-7 cups) and can using a water bath method (bath 10 minutes).
5. Let cool completely before storing the well sealed jars in a cool dark place until opened. Once opened store in the fridge.

Since I already had enough syrup right now, I set aside 1.5 cups of elderberry juice to experiment with elderberry jelly. I liked it, so here is the recipe…

Spiced Elderberry-Cherry Jelly

1. Boil 1.5 cups of elderberry juice, 1/2 cup unsweetened, dark cherry juice, and the juice of 1/2 a lemon with 3 whole cloves, 2 whole all spice, and 1 cinnamon stick for 10 minutes.
2. While the juice is boiling, mix in a separate bowl 1/2 cup honey with 2 t pectin powder (use the amount as specified on your pectin package).
3. At this point, remove the spices and add 2 t calcium water (use the amount as specified on your pectin package).
4. Take off the heat and add the honey/pectin mixture and 1/2 cup sugar. Return to a boil.
5. I place the jelly in 1 cup (2-3) jars and can using a water bath method (bath 10 minutes).
6. Let cool completely before storing in well sealed jars in a cool dark place until opened. Once opened store in the fridge.

Let me know what you think and if you have a few recipes of your own!

Here is the basic information for or field trip:

• We will meet at their elderberry mitigation site Tuesday, July 27 in the morning at 10:00 AM. For those of you who sign up, I will email you the directions this weekend. I would allow yourself 45 minutes from downtown Sacramento to get there.
• We will first be given a guided tour of the elderberry mitigation site as one large group.
• Then we will proceed to a riparian area adjacent to a levee where we will harvest the elderberries.
• The children and I will stay at the riparian area at base of the levee and explore while the adults harvest.
• Then we will all leave together.

What to bring:

• Water, Water, and Water.
• Sunscreen and Hats
• Snacks
• Thick plastic bags or a few plastic shopping bags (the stems can poke holes in the thinner bags)
• Shears or scissors

I would recommend everything you bring fit into a backpack or something you can wear and keep your hands free. Also the same for infants. There will not be a good place for them to be on the ground, so I would recommend packing them too!

I am very excited about this opportunity and grateful to Wildlands for their generosity. For more information about elderberries, please see my previous post: Come with Me to the Harvest.

I am so excited! Thanks to the wonderful people at Wildlands Inc. I have arranged for 10 lucky people to attend an elderberry harvesting field trip on one of their mitigation sites. “

What is an Elderberry?

Elderberry shrubs can get quite big and are often confused with trees. They have large clusters of white flowers in the spring that ripen into dark berries in the summer (when I say elderberry, I am referring to the Sambucus nigra elderberries, not the red). They are considered riparian and often associated with rivers, streams, and creeks and in grasslands adjacent to water. Here in the Central Valley, they are home to the Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle (it is currently listed as a threatened species). The beetle spends most of it’s life as a larva in the stems of the shrub, so we need to be careful when harvesting. Normally the elderberries are usually best to harvest in August, but it varies every year.

Why Elderberries?

If you read my blog regularly, you will know that I am a huge fan of elderberries. If you are sick, have a sore throat, sniffles, a cough… my first question will be have you been taking your elderberry syrup? Elderberry is an anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and antioxidant. It helps build the immune system and is especially helpful for respiratory illness such as asthma or bronchitis.  We all take elderberry syrup twice a day at the first sign of a cold or virus and we usually recover quicker, coughs don’t linger, and rarely does anyone get a secondary infection. It can be taken regularly during an allergy season. I also give it to my children for a few days to a week before and after getting immunizations, traveling, or the first days of school or if a virus is going around. Here are a few links to some other sites with interesting information on elderberries:

• Medicine Hunter
• Herb Wisdom
• Wikipedia
• USDA

What do you do with elderberries?

We have been taking elderberry syrup for years, but buying it can be very expensive. So last year I started making my own. After harvesting the berries, I immediately juice them and then freeze the juice in 3 cup portions. Then I can make and can the syrup as I need it. This way it does not go bad before we can use it. I use local honey to make the syrup and by making it seasonally, I can use seasonal honey (this helps in fighting local  and seasonal allergens). CLICK HERE for my previous post on Making Elderberry Syrup and CLICK HERE for the Cough Syrup recipe. I am just on my last batch now from last year, just in time! As this syrup does contain honey, I do not recommend it for children under 2. You can make it totally with sugar or purchase Herbs for Kids Elderberry Syrup. There are many things you can make with elderberries. They are good as a jam, a compliment in a pie or other baked good, tea, wine, etc.  Many people also use the flowers for teas, liquors, jellies, etc. I still have a lot more experimenting to do.

But ONLY use the flowers or RIPE BERRIES and make sure you cook them! Elderberries should not be eaten raw. All parts of the plant contain the toxin hydrocyanic acid which is destroyed by cooking. Red elderberry (S. pubens) is considered poisonous and should not be used at all since cooking does not destroy enough of the toxin. Most of the berries in the Sacramento area are S.nigra elderberry. The stems and leaves have the highest concentration of hydrocyanic acid that is why I recommend removing them. I have seen some recipes that say not to worry about the smaller stems, especially if you are boiling it. I have also seen some recipes that do not boil the juice, I would strongly advise against eating the berries or drinking the juice raw. I have also seen people suggest using the leaves. I would NOT advise using the leaves as they have higher concentration of hydrocyanic acid.

So how can You come harvesting?

The field trip is set for July 27, 2010 (subject to change if berries aren’t ripe enough), some time in the AM to avoid the heat. As I said there are only 10 spots available, so I have decided to have it on a first come first serve basis. If you would like to attend the field trip, please leave a comment on this post, not on Facebook. The first 10 received will reserve their spot. I will also have two back up spots, in case some one can not attend. If there are too many people responding at the same time, I will draw names. I hope this sounds fair. I would love to take everyone, but C’est la vie.