June-Berry. Shadbush
Categories:
Vii Wild Food On The Trail
There are berries on trees as well as on bushes and vines, at least they
are called berries though not always resembling them.
The June-berry is a tree from ten to thirty feet in height, while its
close relative, the shadbush, is a low tree and sometimes a shrub. The
fruit resembles the seed-vessels of the rose; it grows in clusters and
is graded in color from red to violet; it has a slight bloom and the
calyx shows at the summit. It ripens in June and is said to be sweet and
delicious in flavor. The oblong leaves are sharply toothed, rounded at
the base and pointed at the tip. The young leaves are hairy. The flowers
are white and grow in clusters.
The shadbush grows in wet places and its fruit is smaller and on shorter
stems. It is also said to be more juicy. The leaves are rather woolly.