We are sorry! This program is SOLD OUT. Please contact registrar@cincynature.org to be added to the waitlist. We will contact you only in the event that space becomes available.
Preregistration required.
Program participants should meet in the Rowe Visitor Center Auditorium.
It’s cold and flu season…prime time to learn how to make elderberry syrup and learn about an ancient plant. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates called elder the “medicine chest of the people,” believing he could heal any part of the body with the plant. Modern scientific methods have revealed elder’s unique combination of antioxidants including antiviral compounds.
Europeans have known and made use of black elderberry (Sambucus nigra) for centuries but American elder (Sambucus canadensis) is coming into its own. We’ll explore the usefulness of our native American elder from an ecological perspective as well as from a human usage angle.
In this class Lisa Hildebrandt, a recent graduate of the Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine and long-time foraging group member, will review the medicinal value and applications of elder. Jason Neumann, Cincinnati Nature Center's Public Program Manager, curious forager and perennial farming enthusiast, will touch on a range of culinary uses for the flowers (fresh, dried, frozen) and fruits (fresh, juiced, dried, or frozen).
In this class, you’ll:
Prep and take home dry ingredients and instructions to make your own 8 oz sample of cold-fighting elderberry syrup.
- Review elderberry plant and flower identification as well as potential look-alikes.
- Prepare for early summer harvesting as you learn how to identify and select elderflower blossoms to make elderflower cordial. We’ll send you home some elderflower cordial to enjoy.
- We’ll showcase the many range or applications for elderflower cordial and whip up some elderflower whipped cream to top off pawpaw sorbetto.
- Try hot tea made from dried elderflowers.
- Learn how to take elder cuttings to propagate your own elder bushes. We’ll send you home with cuttings and enough know-how to get you started on your own backyard-foraged elder.
- We’ll also have some fun exploring American Elder’s folklore, natural history, botany, and history with humans through a light-hearted trivia approach.
Cincinnati Nature Center Members $12; nonmembers $21 (includes daily admission).
*Please note that cancellations must be made at least two weeks in advance of the event. No refunds or transfers of fees will occur if the request is made less than two weeks prior to the event.
Important Information For All Program Registrants: Please retain your order number or print off a copy of the email acknowledgement as a receipt. You will need your order number from your transaction to gain entry at the gate/to attend your program.