Every part of the plant has been used for dying cloth. The bark and roots were used as ingredients for black dye, the leaves will dye green and the berries will dye blue, lilac or violet depending on the mordant used. The stems were used to make flutes or blow guns once the pith was pushed out. Few other plants have so many uses as the elder. Elder trees are not seen as often today as in earlier days, perhaps because people have forgotten their many uses.
Few people take time to collect berries for jelly or wine, if they can find any.
Land development has taken away many wild and cultivated places where elder trees once grew. The mystery and myths surrounding this most useful member of the herb family are fading away, but its value, as an important medicinal plant should not. Grieve, M., A Modern Herbal , Dover Publications, Inc., New York, Vol.