Sweet Viburnum. Nanny-Berry. Sheepberry
Categories:
Vii Wild Food On The Trail
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.