How to Grow Elderberry and Harvest It Safely

Elderberry

Overview

Elderberry is the dark berry behind the syrup everyone seems to be making. It’s also an easy shrub to grow. A bush in your own yard means you know exactly what you’re picking.

Here’s the short version:

1. Grow American elderberry (S. canadensis). It’s native and hardy across most of the US.
2. Expect a light crop in year two and a full crop by year three or four (Ohio State Extension).
3. Pick only ripe berries, and always cook them, even dried ones. Raw or unripe berries can cause nausea, vomiting, and severe diarrhea. The harvest section explains why.

Growing your own also means fewer bags of dried berries to buy. Elderberry is bigger than the five easy pot herbs in our start-your-garden guide, but the same basics apply: good drainage, sun, and steady water.

American or European elderberry: which to grow

Both make good berries. They just fruit on different wood, which changes how you prune.

Sources: Ohio State Extension (fruiting wood); NC State Extension (zones).

Buy a cultivar sold for fruit. Ontario’s agriculture ministry lists ‘Adams’, ‘Johns’, ‘York’, ‘Victoria’, and ‘NY21’ as American fruiting cultivars (OMAFRA). Some elders are sold mainly for their leaves, like ‘Black Lace’ with its dark, deeply cut foliage (NC State Extension). If you want berries, pick one sold for fruit.

Start from a nursery plant or a cutting, not seed.

Where and how to plant elderberry

Give it full sun for the best crop, and get a soil test first (Ohio State Extension). On heavy or soggy ground, plant in a raised bed. Choose an open spot with good airflow.

Plant two. One plant can fruit on its own. But two or more cultivars planted near each other set more fruit.

Space plants at least 6½ feet apart. Clear out perennial weeds before you plant. Then:

1. Plant in early spring, at the same depth it grew in the nursery pot.
2. Firm the soil around the roots and water it in.
3. Mulch to keep weeds down.

In the first year, pinch off the flower clusters. That way the plant puts its energy into roots.

Sources for this section: Ohio State Extension and OMAFRA.

Can you grow elderberry in a pot?

Yes, if the pot is big enough. Use one at least 24 inches wide and 20 inches deep. Width matters more than depth, because the roots are shallow. Pick a heavy pot so it won’t tip (Gardener’s Path).

A pot that size needs at least five drainage holes. For drainage basics and a base potting mix, see our start-your-garden guide. Just note that elderberry likes its soil slightly acidic, unlike most of the herbs there.

Choose the most compact fruiting cultivar your nursery offers. Give it six or more hours of sun. Pots dry out faster than beds, so water whenever the top inch feels dry.

In winter, protect the roots from freezing. Mulch the pot 2 inches deep, or wrap it in burlap or an old blanket.

A potted shrub stays smaller, so expect a smaller harvest. For better fruit set, use two pots of different fruiting cultivars (see Plant two).

Watering, pruning, and seasonal care

Beyond the weekly watering in the table, water through long dry spells after harvest too.

Pruning: Leave the plant mostly unpruned for its first two years. From year three, prune in late winter, before the buds break. Take out dead, broken, and weak canes, plus any canes three or more years old.

Because established American elderberry fruits on new wood (see the species table), you can cut every stem to the ground in March, as commercial growers do. Don’t do this to European elder.

Birds are the main pest. Netting works best, along with prompt picking.

Watch for canker, powdery mildew, leaf spot, borers, spider mites, and aphids (NC State Extension). For canker and powdery mildew, prune out infected wood and open up the shrub so air moves through it.

Sources for this section: OMAFRA (water, pruning, birds, disease care) and Ohio State Extension (cutting to the ground).

How to grow elderberry from cuttings

Once you have a bush, or a friend has a named fruiting cultivar, cuttings are the cheapest way to get more plants.

Hardwood cuttings (late winter)

1. While the plant is dormant, usually in February or March, cut pieces of last year’s growth. Each piece needs two to four nodes (Ohio State Extension). A node is the bump where a leaf bud sits.
2. Plant each one right side up, so only the top pair of buds shows above the soil (OMAFRA).
3. Keep the soil moist while they settle in.

You can also take cuttings in fall. Keep them cool and dark in a plastic bag, then plant them in spring.

New leaves are a good sign, but they aren’t proof of roots, so leave the cuttings in place through the season.

Softwood cuttings and suckers

Softwood cuttings are taken during the growing season. They need steady misting and dry out easily.

Suckers are another route. Elderberry sends up new shoots from its roots, and you can dig these up and replant them. Pull out any extras, or the bush will spread into a thicket.

Sources for this section: Ohio State Extension, OMAFRA, and NC State Extension.

Elderberry vs pokeweed and hemlock: how to tell them apart

A plant you bought with a label is the surest ID. If an elder turns up on its own, or you’re picking from someone else’s bush, check these points first.

Sources: NC State Extension (elderberry); Iowa State Extension and The Morton Arboretum (pokeweed); the US Geological Survey (USGS) and OMAFRA (water hemlock).

Water hemlock grows in wet places like ditches, stream banks, and marshes. The US Geological Survey calls it deadly to people and animals, and its roots are the most poisonous part. Its white flower clusters are what get mistaken for elderflowers.

Poison hemlock also has white flower clusters. Like water hemlock, it’s an herb, not a woody shrub (USGS).

Pokeweed is toxic in all its parts (Iowa State Extension). The Morton Arboretum says its sap can be absorbed through broken skin and can cause a rash in some people (The Morton Arboretum). Our advice: wear gloves if you pull it.

Before you pick, ask:

1. Is it a woody shrub? Pokeweed and both hemlocks are not.
2. Are the leaves in opposite pairs?
3. Do the berries hang in a broad, drooping cluster, not along a long stalk?
4. Are the berries dark purple to black? Red elderberry (S. racemosa) is a different plant, and Oregon State Extension says not to make food from it.

If any answer is no, or you aren’t sure, don’t pick. Your local extension office can help with an ID.

How to harvest elderberries safely

Can you eat raw or dried elderberries?

No. Raw or unripe berries, leaves, and stems contain substances that can release cyanide. They can cause nausea, vomiting, and severe diarrhea. Cooking removes the toxin, according to the NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH).

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center says elder bark, leaves, and raw berries have caused poisoning (MSKCC). NC State Extension lists the roots as toxic too (NC State Extension). Keep all of them out of anything you make.

Here’s why the stems matter. In 1983, 11 of 25 people at a California gathering got sick after drinking juice pressed from berries crushed together with their leaves and branches. Everyone recovered (CDC).

Drying doesn’t replace cooking. Dried berries should be rehydrated and cooked before you eat them (Oregon State Extension).

None of these sources sets a general minimum cooking time for destroying the toxins. They simply say to cook elderberries before eating. Each elderberry recipe on this site gives its own cooking step, so follow it all the way through. Our syrup recipe, for example, simmers the berries until the liquid is reduced by about half.

When are elderberries ripe?

Ripe elderberries are deep purple, almost black (Ohio State Extension). They usually ripen in August or September.

A cluster doesn’t ripen all at once. It can take one to two weeks (OMAFRA). Pick it only when the whole cluster is dark, because unripe fruit is much more toxic than ripe fruit (NC State Extension).

How to pick and destem elderberries

Plan on a night in the freezer between picking and destemming.

1. Snip off whole clusters. Get them cold within a couple of hours, because quality drops fast at room temperature.
2. Freeze the clusters on a tray. Frozen berries come off the stems more easily.
3. Rub them gently over a wire cooling rack ad set over a baking pan. The berries drop through, and the stems stay on top.
4. Pick out every bit of stem or leaf, and any green or red berries, until the bowl holds only dark berries. Stems, leaves, and unripe berries contain substances that can release cyanide (safety notes).

Keep fresh berries in the fridge at 35–40°F for the short term, or freeze them. Raw berries freeze safely, as long as you cook them when you use them (Oregon State Extension).

Sources for the steps: Ohio State Extension, OMAFRA, UC ANR, and Oregon State Extension.

Our syrup, decoction, and oxymel recipes use dried berries (the syrup also takes fresh or frozen). To keep a harvest, dry it, using one of the methods below.

How to dry elderberries

In a dehydrator

Spread the berries in a single layer on mesh trays. Oregon State Extension dries blue elderberries at 135°F for 6 to 8 hours. It says American and European elderberries are safe to dry too, but gives no separate time for them, so dry until they pass the check in Is it dry?

How to dry elderberries without a dehydrator

First, a quick decision. Oven drying isn’t safe with young children or pets around (North Dakota State Extension). If that’s your house, use a dehydrator. Or keep the berries frozen (see How to pick and destem) and cook them into one of Oregon State Extension’s tested elderberry jams or jellies.

If you go ahead with the oven:

1. Check that your oven holds about 140–145°F. Use an oven thermometer ad on the rack.
2. Spread the destemmed berries in a single layer on a baking sheet.
3. Prop the door open 2 to 6 inches, and set a fan near the door (North Dakota State Extension).
4. Check often. Oven drying can take up to twice as long as a dehydrator (Clemson Extension).

Is it dry? Conditioning and storage

Ready when: the berries are crispy with no moisture pockets, and they rattle when you shake them.

Next, condition them. Pack the berries loosely in a sealed jar for 7 to 10 days, and shake it daily. If moisture beads up inside, dry them longer.

Store them in a glass jar with a tight lid ad in a cool, dark place. Dried fruit keeps about a year somewhere cool. Remember that dried berries still get cooked before eating.

Sources: Oregon State Extension (crispy, no moisture pockets) and Clemson Extension (rattle test, conditioning, shelf life).

For herbs and flowers, see our drying guide.

Traditional uses

Elderberries are a traditional food. Cooked berries have long been eaten in pies and jams (CDC). The fruit of European elder is used for pies, wine, and jelly (NC State Extension).

Parts used

Ripe berries, always cooked (see Can you eat raw or dried elderberries?). Elderflowers are used too, but this guide covers the berries.

Every flower cluster you pick is one fewer cluster of berries. White flower clusters are also where hemlock gets confused with elder.

Common preparations

Each of these cooks the berries. Memorial Sloan Kettering advises avoiding elderberry while pregnant or breastfeeding, so talk to your doctor first (safety notes).

• Syrup: dried, fresh or frozen berries simmered, strained, and sweetened. Oregon State Extension says its tested syrup recipe isn’t safe to can when it’s made from American or European elderberries, so keep homemade syrup in the fridge or freezer. (See our guide to syrups.) No honey-sweetened syrup for a child under 1. Pregnant, breastfeeding, on medicine, or giving it to a child? See safety notes.
• Decoction: dried berries simmered in water. This is the way to make elderberry “tea,” since the berries need cooking, not just steeping. (See our guide to decoctions.) Pregnant, breastfeeding, on medicine, or giving it to a child? See safety notes.
• Oxymel: dried berries simmered in vinegar, then mixed with honey. (See our guide to oxymels.) The honey rules it out for a child under 1. Pregnant, breastfeeding, on medicine, or giving it to a child? See safety notes.

Never give honey to a child under 1 year old (CDC). The syrups guide lists other sweeteners.

Read the safety notes below before using any of these.

Companion and garden notes

Butterflies and other insects visit the flowers. Songbirds eat the fruit and nest in the shrub, which is why the netting matters. Deer browse the leaves, twigs, and fruit too.

When you prune out old canes, consider leaving a few as 12- to 24-inch stubs. Stem-nesting bees use the dead stems (NC State Extension).

Safety notes

Raw berries: Never eat elderberries raw or unripe, and keep leaves, stems, bark, and roots out of anything you make. See Can you eat raw or dried elderberries?

Oven drying: North Dakota State Extension says oven drying isn’t safe with young children or pets around (NDSU). See How to dry elderberries without a dehydrator for the alternatives.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding: Memorial Sloan Kettering advises avoiding elderberry during pregnancy or while breastfeeding (MSKCC). The NIH’s integrative health center says little is known about its safety then (NCCIH). Talk to your doctor first.

Children: Neither the NIH center nor Memorial Sloan Kettering gives safety guidance for children. Talk to your pediatrician before giving any elderberry preparation to a child. And no honey under age 1 (see Common preparations).

Medicines and supplements: If you take any medicine, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before using elderberry (NCCIH). The same goes for store-bought elderberry supplements. Memorial Sloan Kettering notes elderberry may add to the effects of diabetes medicines, diuretics (water pills), and laxatives (MSKCC).

Lookalikes: Buy a named fruiting cultivar from a nursery. Check any unlabeled plant against the ID checklist. Pokeweed sap can be absorbed through broken skin and can cause a rash in some people (The Morton Arboretum). Our advice: wear gloves if you pull it.

Elderberry is one of the easier shrubs to grow. The care comes at harvest, and the rules are short: ripe, destemmed, cooked.

Planning the rest of your garden? Start your first medicinal herb garden.

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