[ellied]

Best start hanging on to my plastic milk bottles then

[suziequeue]

I have kept a couple of bottles of cordial from last year as I find I always seem to want elderflower cordial most just before the flowers appear. I love to sit outside in the sun and have it with fizzy water.

[HappyHippy]

I am overrun with elder at the moment and have left it now to flower so I can have a go at cordial.  Noticed a few flowers coming this week but not fully out yet so I reckon you're about right on time and hopefully can post your experiences to guide me in my first attempts!

I should do nettles too, another crop I'm good at.. but there's something about them and elder that I've never managed to produce anything useful from, I think somewhere I'm convinced the complex structures of the elderflowers will harbour some creepy crawly thing I miss and end up consuming..

You'd not end up eating beasties, promise  At the end of the steeping process (a week for nettles) you need to strain the cordail. I did it with a sieve, then a tea strainer  (in the absence of anything more suitable) but I'll be buying a jelly bag or muslin for the next attempt  You should go for it, the nettle one is lovely 

[Dans]

Flowers are out in Midlothian

Dans

[Marjolie]

 
Hello from today's newbie! I just wanted to come in to say hello to you, I love that this site exists, now finally a chance to share and read things which are interesting.... (and I'm almost certain I won't get the 'rolling-eyeballs' whenever I want to talk about all the great stuff going on outside!)

I've just picked my first Elderflowers of the year here in Arbroath, spring kept us hanging on didn't it? But finally, ping! And here it is....I've mixed this years Elderflower up a bit by combining it with Dog-Rose- it's a taste sensation!

Thanks for having me and great to find you all (hooray)
Marjolie x

[HappyHippy]

Hi Marjolie 

I can't find mine yet (think I've been looking in the wrong area of woodland  ) going out to look again tomorrow and taking the quad this time 

Mmmm, dog rose  I'm sure we've got that.......somewhere !
What we do have is an abundance of wild raspberries  But it'll be one mad day of picking them once they're ready to save the birds getting them 

Cordials are quite exciting aren't they ? Oh how sad that makes me sound - never thought I'd go all hunter/gatherer  But I'm getting so into the whole forraging/wild foods side of smallholding, I feel a 'plan' forming (much to OH's terror  )

[Greenerlife]

If you now enjoy foraging happyhippy you should look at a book my OH gave me - edible wild plants and herbs by Pamela Michael.  Got some amazing stuff in it - am currently making Beech leaf Gin (it's gone green after the first week....exciting!)


Oh...and hello Marjolie!   

[Bionic]

Karen,
My elderflowers still aren't out    so yours may not be either. The tight green buds are begining to look a bit paler though so hopefully shouldn't be long now

[FiB]

still waiting in North wales       Unbelievable. July!!!!!  Ive usually made and drink litres of 'champagne' by now!