On the Trail: An Outdoor Book for Girls

by Lina Beard; Adelia B. Beard

Sweet Viburnum. Nanny-Berry. Sheepberry

The fruit of the sweet viburnum, nanny-berry or sheepberry, is said to be edible. It grows on a small tree, of the honeysuckle family, in the woods and by the streams from Canada to Georgia and west as far as Missouri. The tree has a rusty, scaly bark and broad, oval leaves, pointed at the tip and finely toothed. The flower clusters are large and, though white, they appear yellowish from the many yellow anthers at the centre. When entirely ripe the fruit is a dark blue or black and is covered with a bloom; before ripening it is crimson. The berry grows in clusters on slender red stems. It is elongated and rather large. At its summit is the calyx and stigma. The seed inside the berry is a stone which is flattened, blunt-pointed, and grooved. The fruit ripens in September and October.

Large-Fruited Thorn

The thorns, large-fruited and scarlet, are edible. As a child I knew the fruit as haws and was very fond of it. The large-fruited thorn is a low tree with branches spreading out horizontally. You will often find it in thickets. The bark is rough and the thorns on the branches are long, sharp, and of a light-brown color. In flavor the fruit is sweet and apple-like; the flesh is dry and mealy; it grows on hairy stems and the seeds are hard, rounded, and grooved. The summit is tipped with the calyx and it ripens in September. The leaves are thick, narrowed at the base, and rounded at the ends, with veins underneath that are prominent and often hairy.

Black Haw. Stag-Bush

The fruit of the black haw, or stag-bush, is not edible until after frost has touched it. It is oval, dark blue with bloom, and about half an inch long. It grows in stiff clusters on short, branching stems. The shrub, which is sometimes a small tree, is bushy and crooked, with stout and spreading branches. It is found from Connecticut to Georgia and as far west as the Indian Territory. It grows among the underbrush in forests. The bark is scaly and of a reddish-brown color, the leaves are dark green and smooth on the upper side, paler and sometimes covered with matted hair on the under side, where the veins show prominently; they are two or three inches long and generally oval in shape with no teeth. The flowers are cream-white and grow in flat-topped clusters.

Wild Plums. Canada Plum

There is a wild plum that is found in our New England States and in Canada known as the Canada plum. The plant grows along fences, in thickets, and by the side of streams. The plum is from one inch to one and a half inches long and is red or orange in color. It has a tough skin and a flat stone. The flavor is considered pleasant but the fruit is generally used for preserving. The leaves have long, sharp points at the ends and are rather heart-shaped at the base. The flowers, white in bud, change to pink when opened. They grow in thin clusters.

Beach Plum

Usually on sandy and stony beaches, though at times farther inland, you may find the beach plum. It is a low shrub and grows in clumps. The fruit is apt to be abundant and is sweet when quite ripe. This plum, also, is used for preserving. The color of the fruit is from red to red-purple, it has a bloom over it and grows on a slender stem. The thin stone is rounded on one edge, sharp on the other, and generally has pointed ends. The fruit ripens in August and September. The leaf is oval, has a sharp-pointed tip, is rounded at the base, and has fine, forward-pointed teeth. There are many white flowers which grow in clusters along the branches.