Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

nafex - Re: [NAFEX] Some Red Berries Edible

nafex@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Jwlehman@aol.com
  • To: nafex@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Some Red Berries Edible
  • Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2004 21:39:54 EST

In a message dated 12/1/2004 9:30:44 AM US Eastern Standard Time, bluestem_farm@juno.com writes:


There is an old saying:
Berries red, have no dread
berries white, poisons sight. 

   Apparently whoever coined that jingle never ate the red berries from Sambucus racemosa.  Who would suspect that elderberries might contain cyanide?  And then, there are white currants which are very edible.  There are alot more red and white berry exceptions so whomever believes in that "old saying" would pass up some good eating but soon die of poisoning.



Opened up some lively discussion, didn't I?  I suspect that saying is very localized and possibly dated before the importation of some species such as the yew.  Of course to almost every rule there are exceptions.

My neighbor this fall told me the red fruited tree in their yard was poisonous and she was very surprised when I picked a few of the crab apples and ate them and walked away alive. 

Jerry



Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page