Flower watch leads to summer berries

Look along roadsides and you might see elder blows, staring out like giant, white eyeballs from the edges of woods. Although it sounds eerie, those "eyes" are only the plate-size clusters of elderberry flowers.

Make a mental note of where you see elderberry flowers, or else pick a few now to fry in batter or add to pancakes or vinegar. A mental note will help you locate the plant later in summer -- for the berries -- which won't be as obvious as were the flowers.

The shiny, purplish black berries look delectable, but don't have all that much flavor. They do, however, make fine pie, jelly, or juice. Just add some lemon or rhubarb for pizzaz. Elderberries also make a nice wine, as do the flowers.

Curing tumors

Over past centuries, the elderberry was put to uses other than eating. John Gerard, whose best seller, "The Herball," was published in 1596, suggested that the pounded green leaves "be laid to hot swellings and tumors, and doe asswage the pains of gout." The 17th-century English diarist John Evelyn wrote that "if the medicinal properties of the leaves, bark, berries, etc., were thoroughly known I cannot tell what our countryman could ail for which he might fetch a remedy from every hedge, either for sickness or wound." More fun than curing ills is to hollow out the pith from elderberry wood, then use the resulting tube in one of its traditional ways: as a tap for sugaring maple trees, as a musical instrument or as a pea shooter.

Various elderberry species are native to the central and eastern United States and to Europe, but they can be grown almost anywhere. Still, they're not often planted despite their pretty flowers, their abundant berries, and their freedom from pests. Some people do plant elderberry bushes, and there are about two dozen varieties, including York, Rubra, and Aurea that are bred or selected for specific virtues.

Elderberry bushes have a coarse look and spread by means of suckers, so are not for intimate, formal settings. The bushes also grow quite tall, more than 10 feet if left to themselves at a good site.

Elderberries will thrive in full or part shade, in almost any soil. In tamer settings or where you want maximum fruit yields, prune by removing at or near ground level any stems more than three years old, and crowding, young sprouts. In a wilder setting, just plant a bush, then let it grow unattended.