Contrary to its name, Guelder rose is not a rose. Formerly it was a member of the honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae) but has recently been moved to a new family called Adoxa… you’ve got to love those crazy botanists and there new fangled genetic sequencing.

The Woodland Trust have a good description of Guelder rose here .

And it is also technically poisonous… if the fruits are eaten raw. But cooked and you’ll be experiencing something few folk have ever bothered tasting.

The berries when crushed have a strange smell, certainly one that doesn’t immediately incline you to befriend this plant. And when cooked they smell of musty old socks.

If you dab a drop of the raw juice on your tongue, you might recoil in disgust as the bitterness hits you.

But as I like to say to folk on my courses “The plant is never the problem, you are”. //

The fruits are antimicrobial and antibacterial. It contains large amounts of quercetin, a flavonoid which plays an important role in fighting free radical damage, as well as being great as an anti-inflammatory. Needless to say bigPharma is actively researching the fruits for new medicines.

That all aside… the fruits rock when prepared properly.