North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Jim Fruth <jfruth@uslink.net>]

Mark,
    Both S. nigra and S. canadensis are reported to yield up to 25 lbs. of
fruit from a mature plant however my sources fail to mention how many years
are required for a plant to be considered 'mature.'  I've got a dozen S.
nigra plus a few canadensis, four year old plants all, that don't produce
that much combined.  The flavor of both varieties is identical.  Canadensis
ripens earlier than nigra and nigra keeps on producing until temps dip down
to 22° F.
    Wine recipe:  Pick the whole head of elderberries, stems included and
place in a tall plastic trash bag and put in freezer - ideal freezer
temperature  0° to -10° F.  When thoroughly frozen, extract from freezer
and, working quickly, lightly pound the contents - this removes berries from
stems.  While berries are still frozen, sieve through a 1/4" x 1/4" hardware
cloth - this separates all but the tiniest stems from the berries.
    Use one pint crushed berries (with tiny stems) to two pints warm water.
Add three pounds sugar for each gallon of water and proceed as with any
other wine recipe.
-- 

Jim Fruth
Brambleberry Farm
Pequot Lakes, MN
www.bberryfarm.com
Jams, Jellies and Syrups

Hello, I'm thinking of planting some elderberry plants this spring, and was
looking for some advice on specific cultivars.  I'm in zone 5a and am
looking to use the berries primarily for wine.  Lewis Hill's book "Fruits
and Berries for the Home Garden" recommends York & Nova, does anyone have
experience with these cultivars or recommend any additional cultivars?
Also, does anyone have any rules of thumb as far as how many pounds of fruit
one plant yields, and how many pounds of elderberries are required to make
one gallon of wine?

Thanks,
Mark River