Wild Fruits of Tennessee 71 



The Elderberry. 

 The common elder (Sambucus Canadensis) of the United States, 

 I believe holds the second greatest possibility for development into 

 a valuable domestic fruit. The ability of the tree to produce fruit 

 in almost any kind of soil, its rapid growth, and its lateness of bloom 

 are all that could be desired. 



For the very reason that a plant is common, and grows and thrives 

 in every locality, its valuable qualities are often overlooked, and it 

 therefore by its prominence is concealed from investigation and 

 barred from development. I have been acquainted with elders and 

 elderberries from childhood, but not until after I reached thirty 

 years did I really see in it its fine qualities. It came about in this 

 way that I was attracted to it: One year the freezes had killed all 

 the cultivated fruits, and on the fourth of July, while out driving 

 with my family, I was astonished to find the elders then in bloom. 

 That year I had a few transplanted to my garden, and I have grown 

 them for the last seven years. The second year I tried crossing this 

 plant with others, but owing to the lateness of the blooming period, 

 I found it difficult to save the pollen dust from other plants which 

 preceded the elder in blooming some two or three months. We 

 dried the pollen of other flowers but it would mould. But we event- 

 ually succeeded in keeping pollen by this method: After the pol- 

 len was shaken off on some smooth surface like paper or glass, it 

 was set in the shade to dry. Too much sunlight impairs its vitality. 

 When it had thoroughly dried in the shade it was put into dry bot- 

 tles, then sealed and corked. In this manner I have been able to 

 keep pollen for crossing, three months or longer if desired. 



I found that the judicious pruning of the elder plants annually 

 produced good results, and, for young bushes, if they are cut two or 

 three feet from the ground, each stem will make from two to four 

 branches and each of these will bear a large clump of berries. By 

 proper pruning and cultivation of the plants, the berries produced 

 were of a larger, richer color, and remained on the bushes until 

 after the frost. The flavor was so much improved that we could 

 eat these raw berries as they came from the trees. The fruit also 

 made the best pies, which were as highly prized as those made from 

 the huckleberry. I regard the elderberry a splendid wild fruit of 

 Tennessee that offers a challenge to plant breeders, which I hope 

 will soon be accepted by some ambitious person. 



