Identification Requested See Photo BC SWest Coast are berries edible?

Discussion in 'Plants: Identification' started by noonataq, Sep 27, 2019.

  1. noonataq

    noonataq Member

    Messages:
    17
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    South West British Columbia
    Id of bush required.jpg
    151364-3ba5f40bc27ba384ffab9b01c7697f14.jpg
    Found near a stream in the Fraser Valley,
    SW Coast of British Columbia.
    Bitter tasting berry no real seed or pit detected.
    Are the berries poisonous or edible:
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Sep 27, 2019
  2. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

    Messages:
    21,284
    Likes Received:
    799
    Location:
    WA USA (Z8)
    Viburnum opulus
     
  3. Sulev

    Sulev Contributor

    Messages:
    1,215
    Likes Received:
    375
    Location:
    Estonia
    They are edible, have good medicinal properties against coughing etc, BUT...

    ... they smell pretty bad! If you can stand this smell, then do some coughing syrup of them.

    BTW, these berries have nice pink heart shaped seed inside.
     
  4. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

    Messages:
    11,421
    Likes Received:
    502
    Location:
    Britain zone 8/9
    Usually listed as mildly toxic - I'd not recommend eating more than a very few.
     
  5. Sulev

    Sulev Contributor

    Messages:
    1,215
    Likes Received:
    375
    Location:
    Estonia
    I haven't heared about somebody has gotten a Viburnum opulus poisoning. I think that the smell prevents anyone to eat those berries in quantities, that may be harmful, not to mention killing dose. One litre of jelly, produced of those berries and consumed during a week certainly does not kill. Edibility of those berries is tested by thousands of people, I think. I have seen even commercially produced jelly and syrup of those berries.
    A quote from A Modern Herbal | Guelder Rose:
    "In Canada, they are employed to a considerable extent as a substitute for Cranberries and are much used for making. a piquant jelly, their sourness gaining for them there the name of High Bush Cranberry, though the tree is, of course, quite unrelated to the true Cranberry."
     
  6. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

    Messages:
    21,284
    Likes Received:
    799
    Location:
    WA USA (Z8)
    Quote immediately preceding will be a reference to the better tasting, genuinely North American native V. opulus var. americanum rather than the awfully flavored, Eurasian var. opulus - which grows as a weed from s BC to OR and w MT, as well as in e N Amer.

    Confusion with V. edule in the above account may also be possible, as here where the first photo shows V. edule, the second V. opulus var. americanum:

    Viburnum edule Mooseberry, Squashberry PFAF Plant Database
     
    Last edited: Sep 28, 2019
  7. Tyrlych

    Tyrlych Rising Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    1,043
    Likes Received:
    192
    Location:
    Kiev, Ukraine
    I would like to confirm that V.opulus is not considered as toxic here in Ukraine as well as in Belarus and Russia.
     

Share This Page