Berries in the Wrightwood area

[Wrightwood]

[Nolena]

Great picture!

[Nolena]

I believe that the pictured berries above are also known as "coffeeberries."
On the Government Canyon field trip today, we saw elderberries, blue & red currants, rose hips (didn't know they had legs, did ya?), and a ton of chokecherries. I'm makin' jam.  )
Pictures will follow.

[Wrightwood]

We also intially thought it was coffeeberries. Then we received this information from a forum member:

This is bitter cherry, Prunus emarginata.

It is very similar to chokecherry and other "wild plums/cherries". But the fruit on bitter cherry forms in cluster unlike chokecherry which forms in long tassels.

Coffeeberry had a unique leaf in that, when you turn it over, the veins on the bottom are raised and usually yellow. This reminds some of a fish after the flesh is eaten and so, it is called "the fishbone leaf".

[zelicaon]

My apologies to Wrightwood and Nolena. I think you are right. It is coffeeberry. The leaves don't look right to me, but the fruit does.

Pictures of coffeeberry leaves
http://www.ecnca.org/Plants/Photo_Pages/Rhamnus_californica.htm

Notice how in the upper picture you can see the raised yellow veins on the back of the leaves
In the lower picture you can see how deeply set the veins are giving the impression of indentations on the shiny dark green leaf

However, in this pix, the fruit looks the same as in Wrightwood's picture
http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?enlarge=0000+0000+0901+0393

Compare to fruit of the bitter cherry here
http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?enlarge=6246+3041+2848+0042
http://www.life.umd.edu/emeritus/reveal/pbio/slides12/12267b.jpg
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/images/cherry4b.gif

Jane

[Wrightwood]

[smiley=shuffle.gif]

Thanks Jane for clarifying it  

[Nolena]

Thanks for the clarification & all of the cool links.  

[Nolena]

The following are pictures from a berry identification field trip excellently led by Chesslike in Government Canyon.

chokecherries

more chokecherries

currants

Elderberries in Chesslike's hand

elderberry bush

bear tracks in mud (Mom & cub)

white berries - need to identify

[zelicaon]

The white berries are snowberry, Symphoricarpos sp.

[Wrightwood]

How about a rundown on which of the Wrightwood area wild berries are edible?

[Arizona]

Delicious as they are, elderberries apparently are in the same family as poison oak.  Those who are sensitive to poison oak, may want to stay away from the bushes.  It took me 2 rounds of steroids to get over my reaction to picking them.  Eating the jam is OK, however.  I just have to get someone else to do the hard part.

[Nolena]

Elderberries are edible, & can be made into jam, pies, & wine. Raw elderberries can slightly bother some people's stomachs. I have no problem with them. There weren't very many of them left in Government Canyon.
Try a higher elevation, like up on Blue Ridge.

Currants are edible raw & are used in baked goods, chutney, salads, jam, juice, jelly, & as glazes. I haven't seen weren't too many of them where I have looked.

Chokecherries are tart raw & have a big pit. The pits & leaves contain hydrocyanic acid, which is removed through boiling. Jam, wine, & syrup can be made from them. There are tons of chokecherries along the dirt road between Highway 2 & Government Canyon, as well as a whole lot right along Highway 2, and they're very easy to pick.

I don't know anything about the snowberry. Are they edible?

[Nolena]

I forgot the wild roses. My picture didn't come out well, so'll I'll have to go take another.

The wild roses are very fragrant when in bloom. Later the "rose hip,' a round berry-shaped growth where the flower used to be, develops. These are rich in vitamin C & can be used to make jam.

[zelicaon]

Just for the record, elderberries are in the same plant family as honeysuckle and snowberry, the  Caprifoliaceae. The leaves are opposite, that is, found in pairs. Little information is given about the eating the snowberry. Most books say edibility is unknown or the berry is tasteless.
About elderberry:
http://www.1upinfo.com/wildlife-plants-animals/plants/tree/samcer/value-use.html

Poison oak, which also has a white berry like snowberry,  is in the same plant family as laurel sumac, lemonadeberry, sugarbush and skunkbush, the Anacardiaceae. Many people get reactions from laurel sumac as well as poison oak.

I've been hiking with people who've needed emergency care from touching Phacelia grandiflora, a blue flower that comes in after fires. Different people are sensitive to different plants.

It might be best to look up each individual kind of berry on the web. There are many many books written about wild edible fruits.

[Arizona]

Thanks for the info zelicaon.  The Dr. told me about an elderberry/poison oak connection.

[Nolena]

There are some berry recipes in www.recipesource.com and www.allrecipes.com.

[Wrightwood]

Western Chokecherry, Prunus virginiana var demissa

These berries plants were found near the Cabin Flat area and
were photographed at night using a flash.

[Nazcar]

There are also a ton of these right along Highway 2 near Mt. High East.

[Nolena]

Here's a picture of a manzanita with fruit. People often make jelly out of the fruit.

[Nolena]

Looks like a good berry season. The manzanita berries are becoming ripe. So are some of the currants. The elderberries are flowering nicely.
Anyone else currantly interested in berry picking?