If you’ve attended any of my wild plant workshops, you’ll have heard me say “don’t eat white berries”. While there is one edible, native, white-berried species on PEI, we have several more that are toxic (including the Poison Ivy berries I featured last week) and others that are foul-tasting. Red-osier Dogwood (Cornus sericea) is in that last category.
There are four native Dogwoods on PEI, and they are very easy to identify: all have leaf veins that start at the midrib and arch out towards the tip, as shown in the photo. If you encounter a plant that you don’t know and it has that feature, start looking at the Dogwoods. You can see this pattern not only in our native species but also the many cultivated relatives found locally, including Kousa Dogwood (Cornus kousa), Flowering Dogwood (C. florida), Tartarian Dogwood (C. alba), and Cornelian Cherry (C. mas). (You can read more about Kousa Dogwood on PEI here: https://www.pei-untamed.com/post/kousa-dogwood).
The ’red’ part of Red-osier comes from the plant’s colourful stems, with new growth being the most vibrant. ‘Osier’ is an old word for flexible twigs – usually Willows – that were used to make baskets. Red-osier twigs make beautiful baskets, wreaths, and seasonal decorations, and I love seeing their cheery colour along Island roadsides against the winter snow.
My favourite thing about Red-osier Dogwood it its year-round beauty. In late spring, the plants are covered in clusters of white flowers that attract bees and butterflies. In mid-summer, those flowers develop into white berries that persist through early fall. Leaves turn deep red and purple in fall, offering a nice mix among the bright yellow, orange, and red of other species. And the red twigs are especially showy when the plant is leafless in winter and spring.
Edible and palatable are two very different things. Red-osier berries are sour, bitter, and all-around unpleasant tasting, but they are usually abundant. Abundant food was rarely wasted, and Red-osier berries were traditionally mixed with more palatable fruit to improve their taste and stretch available resources further. We are fortunate to have tasty food in abundance these days, but you can still try and stretch your wild berry harvest with Red-osier fruits if you’re so inclined.
While we may not find Red-osier Dogwood palatable, birds eat the berries, and I regularly see the twigs browsed by Snowshoe Hare. Cattle, moose, and deer love it – it’s sometimes called ‘deer candy’! This, combined with its nutritional value and antimicrobial properties, has led to research into its potential value as a feed additive for livestock production. Someday, this native plant could be grown as a feed crop.
In the meantime, it’s easy to grow your own from cuttings or from plants produced by local nurseries. Red-osier prefers full sun and damp ground but will tolerate a range of conditions. Before you buy, it’s worth checking to see if you already have it: I met two landowners this year who had purchased plants and were surprised when I found abundant patches of Red-osier well established on their properties.
Red-osier Dogwood is common in roadside ditches, old fields, and along trails across the Island. It’s a beautiful and native part of PEI untamed!
Yorumlar