Planting Elderberries (Lots of them)

Although I may not have posted anything here for a while, I have been quite busy. Today is mid-May and the Covid-19 Pandemic is just beginning to loosen its grip on our daily lives. Life had been normal until last February when we realized that our travel plans had to be put on hold. We had no idea for how long or what was ahead, so we focused our extra time into growing a large garden and implementing our perennials.

Elderberries? Why elderberries? 

Black Elderberry Bush 

For me personally, I always found myself looking for elderberries in the wild while exploring any forested lands in our travels. I had fond memories of my father saying that he loved finding elderberries and often found them growing inconspicuously near small streams or along the edges of lakes. I was surprised to find a few bushes growing near my home at the top of the Chesapeake Bay where the water is no longer salty. I collected a few cuttings and successfully rooted them to plant along the creek along our yard.

Last January, I decided to try again and collected a few dozen cuttings and placed them in jars of water to set on window sills in the sunshine during the gray days of winter when nothing was growing.  Elderberry syrup was becoming popular and I thought maybe I should experiment with selling some of the cuttings. Well, that was the beginning of a fun year selling "sticks" as my friends and family called them. Not only have I sold hundreds - okay, thousands of cuttings, I have also planted hundreds of cuttings.

If you want to grow your own cuttings, the process is quite simple. 

1.) Inspect your cutting to make sure it is fresh by scraping away a small bit of bark from the bottom end to check for the green phloem. This is where dissolved sugars and nutrients flow from the roots to the leaves. If this layer has dried up and become brown, the pathway is gone and the cutting is useless. If this layer is green, the pathway is good.

2.) Make a clean cut at the base of the cutting to make sure the water is able to be drawn up into the cutting and then set the cutting in water, covering at least the bottom two nodes. (Nodes are the bumps where new leaves and or roots form). On my cuttings, the base of the cutting is at an angle for easy planting into the soil and identification.

3.) Soak the cutting in room temperature water until you see roots forming at the base of the cutting or at the nodes. Elderberries are easy to root since they will form adventitious roots in the internodes. Change the water every week or whenever you notice the water getting cloudy. Try to use non-chlorinated water if possible by setting tap water out on the counter at least for 20 minutes to allow the chlorine to dissipate.

Fragrant black elderberry flowers

4.) Carefully plant the rooted cuttings outside before the heat of the summer or afterwards during the fall. Elderberries thrive in soil with plenty of organic matter and lots of moisture with at least 6 hours of sunlight per day, although they will grow a little slower in sub-prime conditions. Keep weeds away from the base of the plant and mulch if possible to reduce water evaporating from the soil. Water if necessary until you have an established bush, typically after one full year of growth.

5.) Prune your elderberries. Since the fruit will grow on the current year's growth, you could cut the bush to the ground after the second year of growing and once the plant has established a good root system. However, taking the time to cut back any three year old canes to the ground will keep the bush in check with healthy growth.

Black elderberries are black when ripe

How to Dehydrate Marigold Petals

Some time ago, I found out that marigold petals are the poor man's alternative to saffron. I can make a rich broth to cook rice in, but that beautiful orangy color is hard to come by with normal spices. Since I grow marigolds in my garden and at this time of the year, there are hundreds of blooms, I decided to collect some. Sure I can go out a pick a few now for tonight's dinner, but in the middle of winter my garden will be empty. Solution? Dry some now to add to my stash of dried herbs.

Pick your blooms in the morning after the sun has had a chance to dry off the dew. Of course, you can only use flowers that are grown without any insecticides. I just use my fingers and give them a slight twist. In just a few minutes you will have a good basketful of gorgeous brightly colored flowers.

Now the seed part of the flower is bitter and needs to be removed. I found that using a pair of scissors made the job easy to separate the petals from the seeds.

Sort the petals from the seeds by placing them in different containers. Keep the petals in a clean container as you don't want to contaminate them.

By the time you are done with the basket, you will have a nice fluffy pile of marigold petals and a pile of seed pods. I gave the seeds to our chickens but you could also add them to your compost pile.

To dry the petals, you need to place them on a tray lined with a paper towel to help absorb the moisture. Don't make the layer too thick or you will run the risk of mold developing between the petals.

Place the tray in a warm oven of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. Every couple of hours, give them a little stir with your fingers to make sure the heat is circulating between the petals.

When they have shrunk considerably in volume and feel dry to the touch, turn off the oven and let them cool down to room temperature.

Pour them into a dry sealable container and store in a cool and dark cupboard. Now you are ready to experiment with using marigold flowers in your cooking.

They look beautiful in a fried rice dish and add a rich color to soup broths.

Why not use marigolds? They are full of carotenoids, antioxidants and so easy to grow and have a pleasant almost citrusy flavor.