Just a warning for those who are foraging for elderberries in watery places and ditches... Water Hemlock also is VERY similar to Elderberry, and very toxic - please verify your plants with someone knowledgeable if you are not sure. Thank you, Patara for this great video!
My grandma told me once when I was a child that, back in her day (she was born in 1896), ladies used elderberries for lip stain (lipstick) and people use poke berries for ink.
I love you. All of these years I had trees and trees of elderberries growing in my garden and I didn’t even know. Thank you Jesus for this video. Wow 😮. I’m so blessed and super happy right now 🥰
Elderberry leaves, in addition to being a deep green and opposite each other on the stem also have a saw toothed edge vs the poke leaves have smooth edges. Also the stem of an Elderberry is woody and has bumps on it... almost like a wart. Hope this helps! 😊
Thank you! I've been holding on to some pokeberry plants for a friend thinking they were elderberries! Glad I figured this out before he came to harvest 😀
Thank you; this was very helpful. My dad used to eat poke; and make elderberry wine so I remember us picking both growing up but couldn’t remember which was what.
Patara I am in Canada (Winnipeg Manitoba - north of Minnesota) and planted an elder about 3 years ago. It is thriving and I have to beat it back rather than coax it to grow LoL. Love it!
I live near the beach in San Diego. I'm no homesteader but follow your channel. I've learned lots and although our worlds are way different I've taken away lots of ideas. Thank you. I hope Dr appointments go well.
Hello Patera, I just scored about 4 cups of elderberrys. They are beautiful. I knew I could come to your channel to learn how to use them. Thanks so much.
Ty Patara -- Growing up I was always told just to leave them all alone. However; now I can understand what to look for. Which will be if I can hold it like my finger and pretend to point at something then it's a polk. (Point polk will hurt someone and umbrella for your elders) If I understand you correctly the leaves being opposite then can be compared to those of the black walnut tree and are also opposites.
wow those berries are beautiful!! I love it!! You make a good point, I think all homesteads should look into having a wide variety of berries and fruit trees. We have alot of wild berries and they to are all coming in. AND all the medicinal benefits are outstanding!! THANKS for showing me the SOUTHERN berries of TN! Awesome job my gal!!
We have a wooded backyard with a creek and tons of these growing everywhere along with the pokeberry. The birds flock each year and make a huge mess on our shed out back. Purple stained juice everywhere. They just bloomed and smell so good. Love them. We also have tons of wild tangerine like trees back there that are a bit sour but good for cooking. Someone told me that our property used to be a huge orchard at one time.
Thank you !.......What a coincidence that I just got through planting a small Elderberry and a small Pokeweed right next to each other in an empty field here in Ocala, Florida which I started from our garden from a tiny shoot in the case of the Elderberry and from a tiny mail order plant in the case of the Pokeweed.....I did it just to help nature by feeding the native birds, insects and even the small mammals such as racoons and possums......I also placed some Virginia Creeper, Firebush and Frog Fruit next to the above plants........It's fun and rewarding.......I did the same with South Florida native plants down in Miami back between 2011 and 2021......Hugs from Miami and Ocala, Florida, Estados Unidos de América.....CM González, ( Sierra Cuban on You Tube )
My grandmother would have us pick wild elderberries to make a syrup for cold and flu season (She was Baptist and wouldn't make wine, LOL). We'd make that syrup and elderberry jam. Come to find out, she was right! Elderberries have anti-viral properties! These grow wild in the ditches down here, but you have to watch out for water moccasins....Yikes!
Really interesting video for someone like me from England. Here, Elder is a known as a weed wood and I don't think you could buy one if you wanted to. But we go out in the country and pick the berries. They make fantastic wine!
Nice video, and thank you for the instruction. I’ve seen the poke berries, and have heard about elderberries, but had no idea about the names and their looks at all. Thank you!
We had a tornado 3 years ago that brought all kinds of new things to our place including elderberry and blackberry. I am so happy to know we have elderberry and now I can take cuttings and have an elderberry patch.
Thank you so much!!!!! I was raised in the country and my husband and I raised our kids in the country. I used to cook poke salad and loved it. In all those years no one has ever broken it down and explained it to me so simply what the difference is between elderberries and pokeberries and the bushes they grow on. I'm going to order some cuttings from the place you mentioned and plant some that I know are elderberries.
Thank you so much. Now I know I have Elderberry plants everywhere..... They tend to take over my area with the fig trees. Now I won't complain and I will start harvesting the berries!
I am in south central Oklahoma and a little west of where Elderberries are native. I bought 5 different varieties to see how they do. I got mine from 360 Farms, Webber Falls OK. They specialize in Oklahoma native varieties. Very happy with my plants.
Thanks for this...just discovered something that looks elderberry like, growing right at the border of my garden here in France, but I did have my doubts. Glad I checked. I wont eat it now...
Girl I could hug you right now! I have been trying to figure this our for years and yay I have elderberries! And you always make me laugh..those song references!!
@@appalachiashomesteadwithpataraHi Patara, Ty for you video with watching this I've noticed I have an elderberry shrub. But I'm nervous BC of the hemlock that looks similar. Any suggestions. I did take a picture of it and did the identification on the pic it is coming up elderberry. 🤷
Thank you so much for this video! My neighbors woods are packed with elderberry bushes! She is going to let me harvest them, which I am very glad for :) I want to make some berry syrup :)
Thank you so much I had a plant that grew in several tomato buckets that I could not identify. Was not sure if it hitched a ride in the seeds I used or the Garden soil I bought I had 6 plants that I had to yank out but I replanted one to let it mature and it is Polk weed or Phytolacca americana. Puzzle solved.
Thanks Patara ... you've identified the little plant with purple berries growing under our sweet-gum maple tree .....POKE BERRY ! think I will make some dye ....should be fun .
Great video Patera. Only wish I had a backyard full of Elderberries instead of Polk Berries. But, we will do something with them. Thanks again Patera, you are the best.
you are a peach! I now know for 100% sure that I have elderberries growing on my property that I recently bought. Thank you so much! I can't wait till they ripen and I can make some wine!
Love Pokeweed, the berries I use for stain and ink. I try to make new batches every season. I have a small batch of Poke in my freezer, as I type, just in case the need for stain arises. Hope to, next coming season, collect elderberries and use them for some projects. Am told they are very good for colds and coughs, etc. good medical berry to have and know about.
Poke berry makes great hedges if you’re on a budget (like me). You need two to three plants deep to really get that solid privacy. Of course they disappear in winter, so it’s not perfectx
I loved this video. I don't think I've ever heard of Poke Berries before but, I love using your recipe and making Elderberry Syrup. Thanks for the vid!!!
I'm so glad to hear of somewhere I can order Elderberry plants!!! I don't have a single one here though I have plenty of poke. It only feels like 102 now here in Middle Tenn. so it's cooling down :) It would be a great evening for that pasta dish you posted yesterday but I have to use up a jar of tomatoes that didn't seal in the canner....GRRRrrrrr
Loved this video! Thank you so much! I just found American Beauty Berry bush...then i found another berry bush, but it is a deep purple (at the moment, seems to be dried out, thirsty or diseased..not sure), but I thought it was elderberry...and this video is so helpful!
Thank you so much. I have been wanting to pick elderberries but never filling confident I could properly identify. Now I'm actually identify. Now I know I don't have any on my property. But will be planting some.
Looks like my back yard! I have to beat back the poke and blackberries to HAVE a back.yard, and I have two huge elderberry bushes in my front yard. (West Mobile)
I went to your channel hoping to find a plant identification Playlist but sadly there isn't one. I have learned some plant IDs from you and Danny & Wanda on their channels. Would love to see all of you setup a Playlist for just plant IDs. Thank you for the information.
Thank you Patara very informative, I have poke everywhere on the property, now that I know what I am looking for I hope I find some Elderberries here as well.
when I was a kid 5 or 6 yrs old I can remember my father taking me with him to pick poke greens. we ate them all the time. And he would always make sure all of us kids know not to eat poke berries. I can not remember for the life of me what they tasted like lol. But I was one of the weird kids that liked my veggies and greens so I'm sure I liked them just can't remember the taste. Love the Video. It is so hot out there stay cool drink lots of water and take care of yourself. Hugs
very interesting video.. thanks for sharing.. maybe when your berries are ripe you could show us how to make the syrup.. Prayers for Mr. James.. hope his health continues to improve!!
I do natural dying and while pokeberry is a very pretty dye, it is very light sensitive and fades quickly. I mainly use cochineal for my reds and purples.
Got it finally! Pokeberries on a strand that looks like a poker! And alternating (leaf) view. Waxy stem (wax->crafts-> they are great for dying materials). Umbrella, ella, ella strand: ELderberries. The leaves are parall el. The stems are woody and not coated: Elders are the tree that we branch from and they tell us things unadorned. Great lesson of mnemonic device, distinction points and motion, (Both living together too!) Haven't had a lesson quick and easy like this since lemon and lime trees.
What a wonderful informity video Patara! You did an awesome job lady! Thank you!!! I also wanted to let you know that you & James are in my thoughts & prayers. I sure hope the b/x went well.
Wonderful video 👏. Another that would benefit humanity is Sumac if you have it around. Locals here do not know Staghorn from Poisin & have never heard of Sumac tea.
I am going to grow Elderberries alongside our house! I think I saw these growing wild in a local park, but I'm not going to mess with those. To be safe I'm going to get some legit, for certain, Elderberry plants from a nursery like you did just to be sure what they are.
How AWESOME is this information!! Identifying plants can be a choice between life & death....eat the right one & live; eat the wrong one and die! THANK YOU for this great video!
Thank you so very much for this episode on showing the difference bet those two plants. I was ready to pick berries and make cough syrup. Thanks for showing the differences
Never seeing elderberries before, but familiar with Polk berries; I would describe Polk as growing like bananas and elderberry as cauliflower. Thanks. ; )
My Granny always picked poke sallet in the spring when it was new growth and would cook it up, I never cared for it myself. I let it grow and get berries, which the mockingbirds and others devour.
Just a warning for those who are foraging for elderberries in watery places and ditches... Water Hemlock also is VERY similar to Elderberry, and very toxic - please verify your plants with someone knowledgeable if you are not sure. Thank you, Patara for this great video!
lynn Hatfield yes please look it up before commenting because it is very poisonous. It’s dangerous to be insisting it’s use as a medicinal!
THANK YOU for sharing that, I didnt know that!
Elderberry grow inditchs
I found a bush my sister in law swears that are elderberries, but it has only one seed, I thought they have more than one. It looks like elderberries
How to identify elderberries
My grandma told me once when I was a child that, back in her day (she was born in 1896), ladies used elderberries for lip stain (lipstick) and people use poke berries for ink.
How neat!
Poke isn't edible is it?
I used to use a chicken feather dipped into the poke berry and write with it
I love you. All of these years I had trees and trees of elderberries growing in my garden and I didn’t even know. Thank you Jesus for this video.
Wow 😮.
I’m so blessed and super happy right now 🥰
This is the best tutorial on poke and elderberry identification I’ve ever seen. Thank you Panera I definitely see the difference!!!!
Me too!
Elderberry leaves, in addition to being a deep green and opposite each other on the stem also have a saw toothed edge vs the poke leaves have smooth edges. Also the stem of an Elderberry is woody and has bumps on it... almost like a wart. Hope this helps! 😊
Thank you you,ve helped sooo much!
Thank you! I've been holding on to some pokeberry plants for a friend thinking they were elderberries! Glad I figured this out before he came to harvest 😀
So excited. I wasn't sure until I watched this, there are indeed elderberries growing on my property !
I thought I had some. Almost certain now.
Not me I have 2 big bushes of Polk berries.
Thank you; this was very helpful. My dad used to eat poke; and make elderberry wine so I remember us picking both growing up but couldn’t remember which was what.
I remember my mom getting the berries off the stems by using a comb. She made a delicious elderberry pie. Great with ice cream
You are a blessing!! I'm in Ga and want to transform my yard into a food Forest, using native plants. Thank you
I have read that poke has a long root so it brings minerals up to the soil. Thank you for showing the distinction between these plants.
My granny in Tennessee taught me about Elderberry. It grows along the sides of country roads in middle Tennessee.
Patara I am in Canada (Winnipeg Manitoba - north of Minnesota) and planted an elder about 3 years ago. It is thriving and I have to beat it back rather than coax it to grow LoL. Love it!
I live near the beach in San Diego. I'm no homesteader but follow your channel. I've learned lots and although our worlds are way different I've taken away lots of ideas. Thank you. I hope Dr appointments go well.
Hello Patera, I just scored about 4 cups of elderberrys. They are beautiful. I knew I could come to your channel to learn how to use them. Thanks so much.
The best explanation on the difference of these berries. Thanks so much for taking your time to explain it ❣️
elderberry blooms looks a little like Queen Ann's lace
The poke looks like an octopus tentacle. That's how I always remember it.
I know the polk.
...that can poke at the rocks and shells. :)
Ty Patara -- Growing up I was always told just to leave them all alone. However; now I can understand what to look for. Which will be if I can hold it like my finger and pretend to point at something then it's a polk. (Point polk will hurt someone and umbrella for your elders) If I understand you correctly the leaves being opposite then can be compared to those of the black walnut tree and are also opposites.
wow those berries are beautiful!! I love it!! You make a good point, I think all homesteads should look into having a wide variety of berries and fruit trees. We have alot of wild berries and they to are all coming in. AND all the medicinal benefits are outstanding!!
THANKS for showing me the SOUTHERN berries of TN! Awesome job my gal!!
Totally different. I have a HUGE elderberry bush in my back yard. I'm happy! Thank you miss!
We have a wooded backyard with a creek and tons of these growing everywhere along with the pokeberry. The birds flock each year and make a huge mess on our shed out back. Purple stained juice everywhere. They just bloomed and smell so good. Love them. We also have tons of wild tangerine like trees back there that are a bit sour but good for cooking. Someone told me that our property used to be a huge orchard at one time.
Great video! Your explanations and examinations were very clear and precise. I found this video very interesting.
Thank you !.......What a coincidence that I just got through planting a small Elderberry and a small Pokeweed right next to each other in an empty field here in Ocala, Florida which I started from our garden from a tiny shoot in the case of the Elderberry and from a tiny mail order plant in the case of the Pokeweed.....I did it just to help nature by feeding the native birds, insects and even the small mammals such as racoons and possums......I also placed some Virginia Creeper, Firebush and Frog Fruit next to the above plants........It's fun and rewarding.......I did the same with South Florida native plants down in Miami back between 2011 and 2021......Hugs from Miami and Ocala, Florida, Estados Unidos de América.....CM González, ( Sierra Cuban on You Tube )
Thank you for the reposting of this vedio it's very helpful to those of us that are still learning.
My grandmother would have us pick wild elderberries to make a syrup for cold and flu season (She was Baptist and wouldn't make wine, LOL). We'd make that syrup and elderberry jam. Come to find out, she was right! Elderberries have anti-viral properties! These grow wild in the ditches down here, but you have to watch out for water moccasins....Yikes!
Wooo... no!
Grandmothers were so knowledgable
Thank you! Great video. Looking forward to learning more! We are planning our land out to be a food forest with a few animals. So excited!
Thank you for this information! Always wondered about the difference. Sure, I could have used my Leaf Snap App, but your description is more helpful!
Really interesting video for someone like me from England. Here, Elder is a known as a weed wood and I don't think you could buy one if you wanted to. But we go out in the country and pick the berries. They make fantastic wine!
Nice video, and thank you for the instruction. I’ve seen the poke berries, and have heard about elderberries, but had no idea about the names and their looks at all. Thank you!
Thank you. There was an unusual plant out back. Thought I had it identified as elderberry. Nope, definitely pokeweed.
I have Elderberries everywhere on my farm and I did not know it, until I watched your video. Wow! Thanks Patara!! 😊
Juanita Haley you are truly blessed!
Juanita Haley the
Juanita Haley me too!
We had a tornado 3 years ago that brought all kinds of new things to our place including elderberry and blackberry. I am so happy to know we have elderberry and now I can take cuttings and have an elderberry patch.
Thank you so much!!!!! I was raised in the country and my husband and I raised our kids in the country. I used to cook poke salad and loved it. In all those years no one has ever broken it down and explained it to me so simply what the difference is between elderberries and pokeberries and the bushes they grow on. I'm going to order some cuttings from the place you mentioned and plant some that I know are elderberries.
Thank you so much. Now I know I have Elderberry plants everywhere..... They tend to take over my area with the fig trees. Now I won't complain and I will start harvesting the berries!
I am in south central Oklahoma and a little west of where Elderberries are native. I bought 5 different varieties to see how they do. I got mine from 360 Farms, Webber Falls OK. They specialize in Oklahoma native varieties. Very happy with my plants.
Thanks for this...just discovered something that looks elderberry like, growing right at the border of my garden here in France, but I did have my doubts. Glad I checked. I wont eat it now...
I have both growing in my backyard, thank you for helping me identify them.
Thanks for making this. I have lots of pokeberry on my property. Next Spring I'm going to plant elderberry and get ride of the pokeberry.
Thanks for the visual tutorial-I need it!
You are sooooo brave! I'd have been more concerned with poison ivy threading in amongst your foliage! Thanks for sharing the differences!!!
Girl I could hug you right now! I have been trying to figure this our for years and yay I have elderberries! And you always make me laugh..those song references!!
Be sure to do your own comparisons for sure! Thanks for watching! Love that Elvis! xo
@@appalachiashomesteadwithpataraHi Patara, Ty for you video with watching this I've noticed I have an elderberry shrub. But I'm nervous BC of the hemlock that looks similar. Any suggestions. I did take a picture of it and did the identification on the pic it is coming up elderberry. 🤷
Thanks so much. First video in my search that actually clarified the difference.
I bought them
And put them in my flower beds. They take up lots of space, flower beautifully and give awesome berries.
Thank you so much for this video! My neighbors woods are packed with elderberry bushes! She is going to let me harvest them, which I am very glad for :) I want to make some berry syrup :)
Make enough for your neighbor.
Thank you so much I had a plant that grew in several tomato buckets that I could not identify. Was not sure if it hitched a ride in the seeds I used or the Garden soil I bought I had 6 plants that I had to yank out but I replanted one to let it mature and it is Polk weed or Phytolacca americana. Puzzle solved.
Thank you so much for this informational video. I have poke berries come up everywhere and wasn’t sure how to identify.
Thank you so much for this video. My children and I moved to where both grow wild.
Thanks Patara ... you've identified the little plant with purple berries growing under our sweet-gum maple tree .....POKE BERRY ! think I will make some dye ....should be fun .
Great video Patera. Only wish I had a backyard full of Elderberries instead of Polk Berries. But, we will do something with them. Thanks again Patera, you are the best.
Need a visual on the difference between sumac and elderberry.
THANK YOU!!! I hope more people see your video..I had a woman here in RI trying to sell Poke Berries as Elderberries...
You are on point I wonder are you still doing video of your garden.
Thank you for sharing Patara big difference between Poke n Elderberry
you are a peach! I now know for 100% sure that I have elderberries growing on my property that I recently bought. Thank you so much! I can't wait till they ripen and I can make some wine!
Love Pokeweed, the berries I use for stain and ink. I try to make new batches every season. I have a small batch of Poke in my freezer, as I type, just in case the need for stain arises. Hope to, next coming season, collect elderberries and use them for some projects. Am told they are very good for colds and coughs, etc. good medical berry to have and know about.
Great video...I was confused in identifying the berries and you explained it beautifully!
I am picking my elderberries the last couple of days. Have some in the dehydrator now.
Thank you so much for the comparison. I was so confused until now. You rock!!!
We have wild elderberries all over our county but no poke berries. Love elderberry picking season. Good video.
Thank you! That was very informational. The visual was fabulous!
Poke berry makes great hedges if you’re on a budget (like me). You need two to three plants deep to really get that solid privacy. Of course they disappear in winter, so it’s not perfectx
We Have some of those wild elderberries.not enough to do anything with but the chickens love them!And plenty of poke berries!God bless~
I loved this video. I don't think I've ever heard of Poke Berries before but, I love using your recipe and making Elderberry Syrup. Thanks for the vid!!!
I'm so glad to hear of somewhere I can order Elderberry plants!!! I don't have a single one here though I have plenty of poke. It only feels like 102 now here in Middle Tenn. so it's cooling down :) It would be a great evening for that pasta dish you posted yesterday but I have to use up a jar of tomatoes that didn't seal in the canner....GRRRrrrrr
There's plenty of polk around here,but i haven't seen the elerberry.Thanks for showing what it looks like.
Loved this video! Thank you so much! I just found American Beauty Berry bush...then i found another berry bush, but it is a deep purple (at the moment, seems to be dried out, thirsty or diseased..not sure), but I thought it was elderberry...and this video is so helpful!
In Kentucky, we had a ton of low bush blueberries - yum
Thank you for this video. I have both and have always been Leary on picking. So excited to go out and check them.
Thank you so much. I have been wanting to pick elderberries but never filling confident I could properly identify. Now I'm actually identify. Now I know I don't have any on my property. But will be planting some.
Excellent video showing the difference between the two!!
Great awareness video! For those that don’t poke berries are poison but the berries do make a great dye.
Thank you
Thank you for sharing .. I know know I had Poke growing in my yard. I pulled it out.. a few weeks ago... Love the info on this.. Big hugs Patara
Thanks for this video. What type of elder berry do reccomend for middle Tennessee area. I'm looking for a type that can tolerate the heat of summer.
Looks like my back yard! I have to beat back the poke and blackberries to HAVE a back.yard, and I have two huge elderberry bushes in my front yard. (West Mobile)
I went to your channel hoping to find a plant identification Playlist but sadly there isn't one. I have learned some plant IDs from you and Danny & Wanda on their channels. Would love to see all of you setup a Playlist for just plant IDs. Thank you for the information.
The side by side was very helpful!
Thank you! That is the best I have seen to tell them apart!
Great video, thank you. I feel more confidant now.
Thank you. I found some yesterday and now I know it is for sure 100%
Thank you Patara very informative, I have poke everywhere on the property, now that I know what I am looking for I hope I find some Elderberries here as well.
Do the elderberries get darker when it's time to harvest? And do you harvest in the fall?
when I was a kid 5 or 6 yrs old I can remember my father taking me with him to pick poke greens. we ate them all the time. And he would always make sure all of us kids know not to eat poke berries. I can not remember for the life of me what they tasted like lol. But I was one of the weird kids that liked my veggies and greens so I'm sure I liked them just can't remember the taste. Love the Video. It is so hot out there stay cool drink lots of water and take care of yourself. Hugs
very interesting video.. thanks for sharing.. maybe when your berries are ripe you could show us how to make the syrup.. Prayers for Mr. James.. hope his health continues to improve!!
He's good. We wait for results... Thank you for the prayers! xo
Luckily I found and bought 7 wild elder berry cuttings. I'm rooting them now (roots warm & tops cool). Praying for success.
I do natural dying and while pokeberry is a very pretty dye, it is very light sensitive and fades quickly. I mainly use cochineal for my reds and purples.
Ellen Bloomfield good to know!
so glad you showed the difference in the berries
Got it finally! Pokeberries on a strand that looks like a poker! And alternating (leaf) view. Waxy stem (wax->crafts-> they are great for dying materials).
Umbrella, ella, ella strand: ELderberries. The leaves are parall el. The stems are woody and not coated: Elders are the tree that we branch from and they tell us things unadorned.
Great lesson of mnemonic device, distinction points and motion, (Both living together too!)
Haven't had a lesson quick and easy like this since lemon and lime trees.
Pokeberry's are good for arthritis when eaten in moderation, up to 8 a day.
More than half my 10’ by 25’ area of corn crop blew down in a storm last night, did I do something wrong, my first time planting corn. 😢
No. Let it rise back up on it's own
What a wonderful informity video Patara! You did an awesome job lady! Thank you!!! I also wanted to let you know that you & James are in my thoughts & prayers. I sure hope the b/x went well.
Wonderful video 👏. Another that would benefit humanity is Sumac if you have it around. Locals here do not know Staghorn from Poisin & have never heard of Sumac tea.
The elder berry flower reminds me of the queens Anne lace flower sort of.Just an old ladies opinion!
I am going to grow Elderberries alongside our house! I think I saw these growing wild in a local park, but I'm not going to mess with those. To be safe I'm going to get some legit, for certain, Elderberry plants from a nursery like you did just to be sure what they are.
How AWESOME is this information!! Identifying plants can be a choice between life & death....eat the right one & live; eat the wrong one and die! THANK YOU for this great video!
Lmao I saw your thumbnail and said, “holy crap, don’t eat that pokeweed!!!”
Thank you so very much for this episode on showing the difference bet those two plants.
I was ready to pick berries and make cough syrup.
Thanks for showing the differences
I had to see this vlog …I have elderberry growing wild in my back yard
Never seeing elderberries before, but familiar with Polk berries; I would describe Polk as growing like bananas and elderberry as cauliflower. Thanks. ; )
My Granny always picked poke sallet in the spring when it was new growth and would cook it up, I never cared for it myself. I let it grow and get berries, which the mockingbirds and others devour.
Definitely planning to plant some elderberry myself!